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[taatsums]

Raito Kitakata Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1.5: THE SUPREME THING - Track 3: So long as you love

This chapter contains extremely major spoilers for Ev3ns Main Story, Chained Up Scarlet, Side B

… In the end, that was what broke the camel’s back and caused Nayuki to give up on me.

I was in the company dorm’s lesson room, playing the piano and reminiscing about my university days.

For the time being, Nayuki and I had settled the talk about passing the family inheritance to him, and I was still the legitimate Kitakata heir.

Although I was aware that in reality, my parents expected neither a conventional marriage nor grandchildren from me.

… What was I looking for by forcing myself through romance back then?

Looking back, I don’t really understand.

Did I want to build a love like the one my parents had with someone?

Did I want a taste of the supreme thing?

Was I looking for someone to share the secret of my “death prophecy” with?

Or maybe, I only did it so I would set free Nayuki from me…

“… Am I shackling Nayuki to me, even now?”

After everything fate put us through, us brothers are connected strongly once more.

I’m overjoyed about that.

I may not have a lover, but I have Nayuki, my little brother.

I have Ev3ns, my friends; and the Chief, my confidant.

That’s enough for me to feel that even if I can’t foster a romantic relationship with anyone, I’m building relationships with love as their basis.

My finger slipped and I missed a note.

I turned my focus back to the keys in front of me and continued playing Liebesträume No.3.

I’d played this song with Kuguri once, and have been practicing it ever since.

I want to be able to play it properly when the day we fulfill our promise comes.

Although, I can’t be certain Kuguri will permit that of me.

After playing for a while, I felt the presence of someone approaching from behind.

I didn’t have to turn around to know who it was. I’ve already memorized his footsteps and presence.

It was Kuguri.

To me, his existence is a sort of mirror.

He leaned against the wall, and seemed to be focusing on the melody I was playing.

Occasionally, when I practice the piano, Kuguri peeks his head inside as though on a whim and listens.

Most of the time he leaves in the middle of my playing, but today he didn’t budge until I’d finished.

“How did I do? Have I improved any?”

I turned to look at him, and Kuguri laughed as if to mock me.

Then, he took a step closer to me and spoke in German:

“Und hüte deine Zunge wohl……”

That was part of the poem by Freiligath.

“Guard your words well, lest harm flow from your lips.”

For even if afterward you plead to god that you meant no harm, the one you love may already have left in mourning.

That is what those words mean.

“Have you noticed? Despite the beautiful melody, the song is all about a cruel fate.”

Kuguri says, no doubt trying to hurt me, and shrugs his shoulders as if he finds it amusing.

“Can you honestly claim that you’ve never hurt someone like that?”

Numerous instances came to mind.

There are plenty of people I’ve cut off, hurt, and pushed away.

Kuguri must be amongst them.

At the very least, I’m certain Nayuki is.

“Human love, was it? Can you truly love people in that way?”

Kuguri left the room while sneering.

After watching him trot away like a free-spirited, untamed cat, I muttered to myself:

“… I think I can, Kuguri.”

At the very least, aslong as my way of loving is acceptable.

I placed my fingers on the keys once more.

In the depths of my ears, I recalled that soft, nervous voice from my childhood.

Um, there’s a right way to put your fingers… Like this, your thumb goes here.

Can you try playing with just your right hand?

That voice, the pale fingers that struck the keys alongside mine, as well as the face that smiled bashfully when I looked at it, and the laughter we shared amongst the ripples of sound…

I remembered it all perfectly.

Every time I play the piano, a young Kuguri calls out to me.

Like this, your thumb goes here. Do you want to try playing? 

Far too long has passed since the time we first met.

Both during that time and now I had single-mindedly devoted myself to experiencing all life had to offer, burning my life all the while through various acts of self-abandonment

It was a form of rebellion. My way of taking out the anger I held towards the world.

A violent feeling slept within me, telling me that if anything hurt me, I would hurt it twice as bad.

How did Kuguri live, I wonder?

I have no way of knowing, but I believe that he too is deeply wounded.

When the pain was too much for me to bear, I’d ended up throwing away the piano that had once comforted me…

Was Kuguri also in so much pain that he threw away his piano?

I might be part of the reason for Kuguri’s pain.

… That might be why he says he wants to break me.

I was hesitant to make such a definitive statement.

If I were to tell Kuguri my conclusion, I’m certain he’d laugh and call me arrogant.

Even if that weren’t the case for him, there was still someone who I had undoubtedly hurt during my life.

Namely, Nayuki.

The poem for Liebesträume includes this part:

The time will come, the time will come, When you will stand at the grave and mourn.

“… What if Nayuki had died back then?”

I’ve turned this moment in my mind numerous times: It was the most despairing moment of my life.

When Nayuki was stabbed onstage and had collapsed in a pool of his own blood.

I thought he was going to die.

My fingers trembled against my will as they sat on top of the keyboard.

Cold sweat formed on my forehead, and my stomach cried in pain.

No matter how many times I recall it, I’m always overwhelmed by a new sense of fear.

If Nayuki really had died back then, I would have fallen on my knees in front of his grave, and wept. 

I would have regretted everything I’d done that hurt him, and perhaps I wouldn’t even be able to hold myself back from trying to kill myself.

… Having death so close always brought me comfort.

Violence, pain, and rage always quelled the suffering within me.

I wanted to live closer to death and feel that I was truly alive.

However, I don’t want any of my precious companions or family to experience this fear now.

I don’t want to leave any regrets.

That’s why, like Freiligrath says, I will love for as long as I can.

That’s what I’ve decided.

My love may never become romantic, but it can still blossom into affection, friendship, and sympathy.

Romantic love is not the only love with any worth.

Other forms of love and even small acts of kindness are all just as valuable.

After so many years, I’ve finally accepted that.

Suddenly, I thought to myself that, I could even become someone’s lover and get married now.

Not in an ordinary romantic relationship and marriage, but as an extension of friendship, so long as my partner is willing to recognize my feelings of wanting to treasure them as love.

We might even be able to exchange a promise to stay by one another’s side forever.

It would not be a typical relationship, but it would be special to me and my partner.

For example, I believe that my relationship with the Chief, who I regard as my confidant, is special.

I don’t want to be in a romantic relationship or marry.

The ideal of having a family like my parents did has crumbled away.

Now what’s important to me is to love those around me, and to die while loving them.

That is what my ideal is becoming.

Like Chihiro, who faces his fans with honesty.

Like Tao, who is always sincere towards others.

Like Kinari, who is always there for others, and helps them as if it’s second nature to him.

Like Kuguri, who doesn’t reject anything no matter how unsightly, precisely because of how unsightly it is.

Like Nayuki… Who accepts even those he’s come to hate.

And like the Chief… who accepted this life of mine.

I believe all of it is love, so I don’t want to ever forget them.

I will never cut them off again, and I will never forget them. I will hold them to my heart, keep them within me, and build upon the past and present as I head towards the future.

Will I die the way I’ve dreamed of if I do so?

If I were to die like that…

… Would my face look to be at peace in my very last moments?

I can no longer remember the face I once envisioned I’d make when I died.

I wonder why that is…

“Maybe I’d understand if I were to ask Toi.”

I whispered to myself, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask such a question to someone as kind as him.

I took a deep breath, and looked at the position of my fingers on the keys.

Then, I struck the first keys to Liebesträume No.3.

It was as though I entrusted my body and heart to the gentle ripples of music.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3

NOTES:

(1) the english translation of freiligrath's poem, o lieb, so lang du lieben kannst, was taken from scott horton's translation from harper's magazine

[taatsums]

Raito Kitakata Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1.5: THE SUPREME THING - Track 2: Hollow Sound

CW: Raito's suicidal tendencies take him to an active war zone

In the end, the relationship with my last lover ended after six months.

I was confused when my lover cried as we broke up, but I was also relieved.

The reason for our break-up was something along the lines of, “I feel anxious when I’m with you.”

You were kind to me, and you granted all my wishes. You’re not at fault, but I don’t actually feel loved at all. It scares me.

…I was shocked when I heard that.

It was true, after all. I had never really loved that person.

…Was it because my preferences lay elsewhere?

I thought my feelings would also change if the person I was dating was different, so from that point on, I tried dating all sorts of people who confessed to me, regardless of their gender, age, or occupation.

Business partners I met in the investing community.

Daughters of high society.

Classmates from my university seminars.

People I met at extracurricular clubs.

Even people considerably older than me.

However, no matter what, I could never check off the final item on my list.

One day, the person I was dating at that time had called out to me. We’d been together for 3 months at that point. 

While trembling, that person told me… “I went to a hotel with someone else…”

I immediately understood the meaning of those words.

And even though I understood, what came to my mind was…

… I suppose this investment was a mistake.

Seeing me get neither angry nor sad, my lover teared up, and then said, “You really aren’t jealous at all.”

After that, I was asked to break up.

I was more shocked by the fact that the problem was that I wasn’t jealous, not that my lover went to a hotel with someone else. 

… I see. So normally, this would be where I get jealous.

The lover who had been sobbing in front of me suddenly seemed like a stranger.

All the things I should have known, such as that person’s smile, likes and dislikes, faded from my mind with a snap.

It was as though I didn’t care about any of it anymore.

I was relieved that person had lost interest in me and asked to break up.

I’d started to find the overly emotional attitude that person seemed to be testing me with to be annoying.

At the same time, I realized that I couldn’t trick myself any longer.

I had dated many people for short periods of time.

I’d felt affection and friendship towards them all. I wanted them to be happy.

But that was the end of it.

… I hadn’t felt anything romantic towards them. I don’t think I even wanted to.…

All my lovers’ advances only made me feel uncomfortable.

Romance… was not fun.

That was when it dawned on me that I would die without ever knowing the supreme thing known as love.

I nodded at the delivery person asking for specifications.

The grand piano I had impulsively bought a few days before was delivered to one of the rooms in my unnecessarily spacious single-person apartment.

The room had been soundproofed just yesterday, so I opened the piano’s lid and placed my fingers on the keys.

Just then, a phone call from my mother came through.

“You’ll be coming home for New Year’s, right?”

I wanted to say that I would, but I couldn’t get the words out.

When I imagined my parents’ faces, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach.

…I’m sorry. Father, Mother.

I… As the heir to the Kitakata family… I am a defective product.

I bit back the urge to say that, and instead said, “I don’t think I will be able to; business is keeping me busy.”

Afterward, I answered all of my mother’s concerns about my health and daily life with a smile, but in all honesty, I wanted to hang up as soon as I could.

Once the call was over, I turned my phone off and sat at the piano.

… I didn’t know why I’d bought a piano myself.

It just happened to catch my eye…

Anything would do, so long as it was something I could lose myself in on my own.

I randomly pressed a key with my index finger, and then suddenly remembered there was a correct way to place your fingers when playing the piano.

Looking far back into my memories, I remembered a young child teaching me that.

… Was that before I had received my “death prophecy”?

Most of my memories from before that prophecy were vague.

I put a musical score geared towards beginners on display and began by playing with one hand.

My playing was clumsy, but as I listened to the sound of the piano, I started feeling as though the emptiness within me was healing.

…How exactly should I live my life going forward?

How could I overcome the despair of not being able to obtain the supreme thing?

You just haven’t found the right person yet.

You’ll surely find love someday.

If I were to ask anyone for advice, those would be the words they’d say to me.

I’d thought so myself, and that was why I had tried dating so many people.

However, no matter how hard I tried to pretend, the feelings of romantic love never grew in my heart. The longer my relationships went on, the more I felt burdened by my lovers’ affections. Eventually, the guilt of not being able to meet their expectations ate me alive and brought me nothing but discomfort.

Discomfort…

That is to say, a very strong feeling of discomfort.

A feeling of discomfort that made me think I wasn’t even myself.

My instincts were screaming at me:

Love is impossible for me.

… That was why, for a while, I didn’t want to see anyone.

“Normal” people can effortlessly do things I could never do.

Seeing that made me go crazy with envy.

Their lack of understanding filled me with rage.

During my long university break, I spent all my time playing the piano.

I gradually improved and could play more and more songs.

While absorbed in it, I remembered the laughter of someone I’d played a duet with during my childhood.

That memory offered me a small amount of comfort.

… Though I could not remember who that person was.

Once the day was over and I closed the piano’s lid, the memories were closed off and vanished as well.

I had let the sounds and sheet music sweep me up like a raging torrent, but when the break had ended and I returned to the university, I slowly resumed all my interpersonal relations.

Not looking to be in a romantic relationship anymore, I turned down anyone who confessed their feelings to me.

I simply passed my days uneventfully, and when I returned home, I played the piano to relax.

On one of those days, I received a call from one of the young ladies I had dated.

I’d kept friendly relations with many of the people I had dated, and so I went to the hotel I was called to without thinking twice.

It had been some time since I’d last seen her. She was much more distant than when we were dating, but I was actually grateful for that.

“I would like to enter a contractual marriage with you.”

However, the words I heard shocked me considerably.

Instead of letting it show on my face, I asked, “Could I ask why?”

“Don’t worry. I don’t feel anything towards you anymore. To be fully honest with you, my parents are trying to use me as a tool for political marriage.”

That’s a story I often heard from people born in distinguished families.

The only reason I haven’t was because our parents didn’t want to treat their children as nothing more than tools.

“You don’t like the person you will be marrying?” “That’s exactly it. So I tried to think of anyone who would be willing to marry me, even without love on the table, and who my parents would also approve of. …And I realized you’d be the perfect fit.”

Because I’m the heir to the Kitakata family, am currently attending a top university, and also have money… Or so she says.

For a second, I found myself admiring what a convenient deal this would be.

I was being offered a relationship, and the person offering would be okay even if I never developed romantic feelings for them.

On top of that, if we were to have a child, I would fulfill my duty as the heir of my family, and my parents would rejoice. Nayuki would also feel at ease.

I’m in.

That’s what I wanted to say.

Given that she was in dire straits, as her ex, I wanted to do what I could to help her.

However, what came to mind instead was the picture of my parents in our home’s living room, exchanging their love without the need for words.

… I grew up watching that love between them.

Being praised by someone, being held by my parents, getting excellent report cards, having an appearance admired by others, being picked as the anchor for the relay.

What reassured me through this and more, was the fact that my parents “loved each other”…

“… I’m sorry.”

The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

I wanted to get married and have children.

Even if I died young, having grandkids would bring solace to my parents.

… But I didn’t have the courage to bring children to this world without loving my partner.

Those children might end up unhappy if that were the case.

I could not possibly endure that fear.

She must have anticipated my rejection, because she didn’t press the issue much after.

“Could you introduce me to someone else, then?”

Is what she asked instead.

After promising to introduce her to several men from distinguished families who had connections in high society, I returned to my apartment.

I headed straight for the piano and stood before it without even taking my coat off.

I’d forgotten to close the lid last night, and the black and white keys were waiting for me with a faint glow.

The moment my finger landed on one of the keys…

I realized that a deep emptiness had formed within me once again.

… If I had agreed to her proposal, I could have become the person my parents wanted me to be… even if it was merely for appearances’ sake.

I felt foolish for letting that chance slip by me.

On the other hand, the reality that I had no other choice but to do so hurt me inexplicably.

I closed the lid. Then muttered.

“I will… get rid of the piano.”

After cancelling my apartment’s lease and throwing away my furniture and piano, I made good use of the time between my university lectures by visiting conflict zones overseas and impoverished areas with high crime rates.

I travelled with a volunteer group an acquaintance started, and met with local activists on my own.

Nayuki was always in a rage, calling me over and over and yelling things such as, “Come back already, you idiot.”

But I liked the danger.

I spent my days focused solely on living.

Pain, death, killing intent. Anger, fear, malice.

For reasons unknown to me, the places surrounded by destruction and all those things gave me peace.

The day before, I’d stood blankly in a place where missiles were raining down and most of the buildings had collapsed, simply listening to the sirens.

Another missile would be fired soon.

The people in the underground shelter were holding their breaths and curling into balls.

Even in a place such as this, when I gazed over all the collapsed buildings, the sky was breathtakingly blue and beautiful.

Suddenly, a thought came to me:

Once I get home…

… I will hand the family inheritance over to Nayuki.

He could create a family with love.

I’m sure he’d be angry, but that’s alright.

It’s about time he gave up on me.

Such thoughts came to mind.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3

[taatsums]

Raito Kitakata Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1.5: THE SUPREME THING - Track 1: The Supreme Thing

recommended reading: Ev3ns Main Story: Chained Up Scarlet, Raito Mayor Novel Season 1 (Origin of the Name)

I didn’t have any particular feelings about graduating high school.

If you were to force me to pick something out, I would say that I was slightly saddened by the idea that my connection with the boy who gave me bandages and milk tea might disappear.

But to me, even that feeling was fleeting as I rushed through my life.

After the ceremony, I was surprised to see so many students–whom I didn’t know the names or faces of–handing me bouquets of flowers and asking for my uniform’s buttons.

At that moment, I saw a number of familiar faces lining up to greet me.

“Raito-san! Congrats on graduatin’! You did a bang-up job!” “‘Grats!” “You guys… You really came to see me?”

What I’d dedicated almost the entirety of my high school life to wasn’t my studies nor any club activities. 

It was a fight team called EDG3.

I had already told the members I’d be leaving the team once graduation came, so I didn’t expect them to show up.

The man who had succeeded me as the leader looked at me, eyes red from crying, and said “Of course we’d come.”

“Are ya really leavin’ us now…!? Uuu, Raito-san…!” “Without you, we’d… we’d…”

The other students passing through the school’s gate were startled when a group of burly, strong-looking men started bawling right then and there.

I comforted each member individually, hugging them and patting their backs.

These men, all older than me, cried their eyes out on my chest. 

“It’ll be okay. You guys can make it.”

I said that to encourage them as I thought about what would happen next.

There was something I wanted to try at the university I would attend… The next step in my life.

(If I can get my hands on it, it will become the supreme thing…)

That’s what my parents always said about it as I grew up.

About a month or so after I started university, just as I was getting used to life on campus, I started hearing more whispers and rumors around me.

“That’s mahorova’s founder, right…? The Kitakata heir…”

“I read in an economics magazine a while ago that he’s starting out as an investor too.”

“What do I have to do to get close to him…?”

This wasn’t the first time I’d heard such whispers around me; people often spoke like that in high society and even in high school too, so I’d learned not to pay any attention to it.

As I walked towards the large gingko tree where students gathered, the person waiting for me—the person who’d recently become my “lover”—smiled upon seeing me.

When I waved to announce my presence, I got a wave back in return.

“Were you waiting long?” “Not really,” was the reply I got to my question.

My lover links our arms together as if it was second nature.

At that moment, the look in my lover’s eyes was frightfully sweet. Honestly speaking, it made me feel just slightly nervous.

But that only lasted for a moment before I forced myself to forget about it.

It is not as though I hate physical contact.

I can also initiate it towards my lover just fine.

So long as I accept it as the status quo, I can do it.

However, the sweetness in my lover’s eyes and words always made me hesitate for a moment.

But I was sure that feeling would fade once I got used to it.

I could hear sighs from all around us as we walked down the road together.

“What a picture-perfect couple…”

“You just can’t come between such a beautiful pair.”

…And so on.

I didn’t pick my lover because we’d look good together…

This person simply happened to confess to me just as I was hoping to try being in a romantic relationship with someone.

Objectively speaking, my lover is beautiful, but I’m not exactly fixated on outward appearances… Or rather, I don’t care about it at all.

At the end of the day, is it not compatability that makes a relationship?

So far, I’ve had no complaints in that regard.

My lover was a quiet and nice person, who listened to all my strange stories without showing even a bit of displeasure.

Even Nayuki couldn’t stand those.

I was sure we’d be going out for a long time.

It’d been a month since we started going out.

In that time, I’d compiled all the tasks lovers would partake in together into a list, and started checking them off one by one.

Now, it was almost complete.

As for whether I had fun during that time, well, most of them weren’t exactly enjoyable…

Regardless, as far as appearances go, there was nothing so different between us and your run-of-the-mill couple.

The final task on my list was something I’d get to once we’d been dating for a year…

To be precise, I would need to develop “romantic feelings” towards my lover.

After my relationship had been going smoothly for three months, I went to visit my parents for the first time in a while.

The most important thing I wanted to do once I started university was experience romance, and the second was to live alone. 

On account of that, with the first chance I had, I left my hometown and rented an apartment in the heart of Tokyo.

When I returned to my hometown, my parents welcomed me with the same warmth and care they always held for me, and the time we spent as a family in the living room was peaceful and comfortable.

My parents were close; they often exchanged glances, spoke comforting words to one another, and touched each other gently.

I understood clearly: those were the signs of their love.

As I watched them, I wondered… How many months would my lover and I need before we acted like that?

… Would we even be able to act like that in the first place?

The words I had written as the final task in my list, “develop romantic feelings”, flashed in my mind.

I couldn’t imagine a future where I had actually checked that off my list.

Regardless, it was too soon to declare it impossible.

We should date for six months at the very least before I make that decision.

While our parents were out, Nayuki came back from high school.

Upon seeing him, a type of joy that I never felt when meeting with my lover sprung up within me.

“Nayuki! Welcome back!” “… You’re here?”

The moment he saw me come to greet him, Nayuki frowned and tutted.

“You’re late. Did you have club activities? Or did you go to an investment meeting?”

I trailed behind Nayuki, speaking to him as he headed to his room.

It was my first time seeing him in his high school uniform, and he looked cuter than usual.

“Sigh… What’s it matter to you?”

He placed his bag on his desk, and sat down on the bed while undoing his jacket’s buttons.

“… Speaking of, haven’t you been investing too lately?” “Yeah. You probably think I’m a little late to it, but I have some money left over. I thought I’d invest it, so I’ve been dabbling here and there.”

Nayuki hummed in response, seemingly uninterested. He’d been investing for a lot longer than I have, and it seems like he’d made good money out of it.

I’d also heard he made friends with some of the big shots in the area.

Nayuki himself hadn’t told me much, but I’d caught wind of all kinds of stories from the people in the investing community when I joined.

“… I sure hope you haven’t been spending your money on anything weird.” “I was just about asking you for advice. Is there any wisdom you could pass as the one with more experience?” “Sigh… Why me…”

Nayuki glared at me, clearly displeased, but extended his hand to me after three seconds.

“Show me your investment summary.”

Delighted, I pulled up my account’s summary on my phone and showed it to him.

Sitting next to Nayuki with only two palms’ distance between us made me feel just a bit lonely.

“Oh. You should put this company on sale ASAP; they won’t be able to settle their bills by the month after the next. …And why did you even invest in this? I don’t think you’ll find any profit.”

Pointing at several of the companies I invested in, Nayuki scolded me.

Even though he was angry, I was so happy that he was giving me serious advice that I smiled, causing him to get even more irritated and say, “Why are you laughing? Is something funny about this?”

“I’ll have no choice but to sell if they won’t settle their bills, but… Is there nothing I can do to help?” “... They’re going under because of a lapse in the management’s judgement. If we showed leniency each and every time, capitalism would crumble.” “But this is no fault of the employees, is it?  They’re probably still working, unaware of the fact that the company is about to go bankrupt…”

When I said that I hold an executive position at numerous companies and suggested that I try to hire these employees, Nayuki simply told me to do whatever I wanted.

“That one aside, why did you buy stocks in this company?” “Hm? I liked their foundational philosophy.”

Nayuki was pointing at the name of a company I’d recently bought, and when I told him the reason, he let out a sigh.

“For a flimsy reason like that…? You’re so bold that it gets on my nerves.” “What do you mean?” “The price of a single stock here will increase by tenfold before long.” “Ohh, really? Well, if you say so, you must be right!”

I watched Nayuki as he clicked his tongue and gave my phone back, hesitating for a while before speaking up. “Hey, Nayuki…”

“… I’m seeing someone.” “Huh? You are?”

As soon as the words left my mouth, Nayuki turned to look at me.

He looked at me as though he was looking at a defective product, and I smiled wryly at him.

“Uh… If I can be in a proper relationship, you won’t have to worry about me so much, either… I caused you a lot of trouble during high school.”

Those were my genuine feelings, but the moment he heard that, Nayuki scowled and stood up.

“If that’s why you’re looking for a relationship then stop it.” “… I have other reasons, too. They say love is the supreme thing, right? I’d like to share that feeling with the person I’m currently dating. …Although at the moment it’s nothing more than a formal title…” “Leave me out of this. I don’t care about your love life.”

Nayuki spoke bluntly, turning his back to me and walking towards his closet. Then, he said one final thing:

“This so-called relationship of yours is only for your own self-satisfaction, anyway.”

I wanted to talk with my little brother more, but I couldn’t fight back against the rejection emanating from his back, so I left his room.

I let out a sigh as I stood in the hallway.

“This so-called relationship of yours is only for your own self-satisfaction, anyway.”

Nayuki’s words played on repeat in my head.

…Isn’t love something you do for yourself?

But, if you were to truly love your partner… Surely that makes it all worth it.

And if I could be someone like that, Nayuki would also be happy.

Nayuki always gets irritated when he sees me.

That anger, in other words, is proof that he has been trapped by me.

I want to free Nayuki from that anger.

…He should just forget about me.

Talking with Nayuki excites me more than talking with my lover.

But apart from that, I also wanted to free him… Free him from the existence that is “me”, and from my looming death.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3

[taatsums]

hi i hope this isn't a rude question but i am extremely new to 18trip and am curious/confused how much kaede + momiji role is interchangeable in stuff? i figured i'd ask you since i'm reading kafka's novel & you tled that. i guess my question is whether the novel strictly sets kaede as the primary hamasaki sibling kafka is interacting with, or is this just simply based on who the player chooses? again, hope this isn't rude to ask i'm just curious how this works in canon (???) 🙇

hello! don't worry, this isn't rude at all!

a little background first: the protagonist you choose is invited to work at hama tours by kafka, while their sibling (the protagonist you don't choose) works overseas; you can change the player character between kaede and momiji through the game's settings at basically any point you wish to (as long as you're not within a story or doing omotenashi), in turn switching their sibling to the one you're not using as well

basically, every story remains the same, regardless of if you choose kaede or momiji, with (mostly rare) differences in dialogue to occasionally reflect their gender, or so they can refer to their sibling

here's a few examples!

(translation by koi; days2 main story s1 - bitter sweet sixteen, chapter 11 africa)

(translation by koi; l4mps main story s1 - designs of happiness, chapter 2 night office)

or the one time (for now) both siblings showed up in the story in hama tour thanks festival!

(translation by slaine, epilogue)

i use kaede (out of personal preference) in all my translations mostly for convenience's sake, since tumblr doesn't have advanced coding to let me let the reader switch, and i've gotten lucky to never have any extreme differences in dialogue

in the case of kafka's novel; the sibling he gets close with is the player character, and not specifically kaede or momiji!

the japanese text gets away without having to make explicit changes, since the language he uses has no need to make itself gendered (he uses 子 (child) and 兄弟 (siblings) to refer to the player character and their sibling), but i couldn't find a way to make that work in english without getting extremely confusing as to why kafka is talking about his best friend in a way that could come off as vague or like he's talking about a stranger, so i settled for making it read as if he's talking about one of them only

sorry this got so long 🙇... i hope this has been clear enough and that you're enjoying 18trip so far!

[taatsums]

Hello! Thank you so much for your hard work on the Tao 1.5 novel. But if i may offer some corrections, 琥珀 means amber, not brown. I think it's important to convey that meaning in the translation (this is referring to a line in chapter 2, regarding Chihiro's eyes). Thank you again for translating the novel! Good luck with the next project!!

hello!! you're right, thank you for catching it!! i've corrected it in the translation too 🙇

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1.5: The Man Who Knew Too Much - Track 3: Flower Arrangement

CW: References to religious fanaticism and murder

Lumière de Cosmos…

That was a name I hated.

It was the name of the deplorable cult my parents were once part of as its executives.

It never even crossed my mind that I’d hear it here of all places.

My heart hurt as if something was squeezing it. My forehead broke into a cold sweat, and I could feel myself getting dizzy.

I clenched my fists to try and hold back my nausea.

Right now, I’ve gotta focus on what Kawakami-san has to say.

“When I was young… I was part of a religious organization, and one day, the leader took notice of me. He chose me to be his assistant, to be by his side 24/7.”

… The leader.

I faintly remembered someone like that.

Once, when I was still young and hailed as the child of God, my parents took me to see him before I was set to appear on TV.

He had such an everyday appearance that I hardly remembered him, but the one thing that really stood out about him was his eyes.

Even when he patted my head with a smile, that smile hadn’t reached his cold eyes.

“… His looks weren’t really anything worth writing home about, but his eyes easily left quite an impression. They were rather uncanny… They were pitch black, but glowed at the ends.”

That’s him, I thought.

The leader I’d met and the man Kawakami-san worked as an assistant for were definitely the same person.

I gulped.

I was still shaken, but this was a good chance to learn more about the cult.

If I could learn anything from Kawakami-san, I might also be able to deduce something about the so-called “Ark” that sent me here, and what happened to Taiki.

… And as to why a cult in 1999 had a time machine in the first place.

“What kind of person was the leader…?”

“… I revered him at first, but as I continued to stay by his side, I began sensing that something was unearthly about him. Of course, I didn’t tell anyone about it. … Slowly, I started to think the leader wasn’t human to begin with.”

My eyes widened.

“No way…”

“That’s what I thought, too. But…”

Kawakami-san stopped for a bit and began shaking.

Almost as if he was afraid of something neither of us could see.

He picked up where he left off with a hoarse voice.

… And started talking about a certain incident that shook the cult at its core.

“The “Ark”, a prized possession the organization had obtained from space, was stolen by a pair of executives. … And with it, they killed their own son, who was still a teenager…”

Overwhelmed by his words, I was left speechless.

There was no doubt that he was talking about me

My throat hurt, and I felt bile rising up. I did all I could to hold back the wave of emotions threatening to take over me. 

I wanted to unleash all the anger, hatred and confusion I’d felt that day and curse the world with it.

“According to the founder… That “Ark” was meant to help us overcome the end of the world. The organization split into two: those who believed the end of the world would come in July of 1999, per the prophecy of the King of Angolomois, and those who believed the prophecy was unrelated, and they began fighting amongst themselves…” Kawakami-san continued, as if confessing his sins.

Since the founder hadn’t said anything, the infighting escalated, and the members eventually decided that whoever donated the largest amount would be granted the right to use the “Ark”. 

With everyone donating more and more, a couple that believed in the prophecy had also donated a hefty sum, but it was no match to their rival executive’s.

Being left with no other choice, the couple chose to steal the “Ark” and use it on their child…

Well, I already knew most of that, given I’d experienced it first hand, but this was the first time I’d heard of what was happening inside the cult.

“I don’t know just how they used the “Ark”. However, if I were to guess based on what the tabloids were reporting… They most likely dismembered their son’s body and left his remains in the mountains…”

According to Kawakami-san, no matter how hard everyone searched, the boy’s body was never found, and the “Ark” itself was probably dismantled and disposed of.

… So that’s how everyone thinks this story ended.

When I went to the library with Chihiro, we couldn’t find many articles on the incident, so this is the first time I’m hearing anything about how the world had perceived me.

… Did Taiki also think I was cut into pieces?

Thinking about that filled me with ugly feelings.

I want to jump back in time and hug my little brother.

You must have been so scared.

You must have been in so much pain.

… But I can’t do that.

No matter how much I wish for it, I can’t go back to that time.

I swallowed back my anger and regret with resignation. I couldn’t let myself be overcome with this fury right now.

Kawakami-san then added one more thing:

“Your name happens to be the same as that young boy’s. That’s why I wanted to share with you all this…”

I held my breath for a second.

I am that boy.

I held back from saying so and just nodded my head in acknowledgement.

“… Once that incident started being widely reported, the organization’s internal conflicts started coming to a close. All the followers were confused… I tried to convince the founder to at the very least give them some guidance.”

“But I couldn’t do it,” Kawakami-san whispered. “Because the leader died in the midst of all that confusion.”

“… He died?”

Shocked, I turned to look at Kawakami-san. His pale face was cast down, and he was shaking.

“… How did he die?”

“I don’t know. … It might have been a sudden natural death… or he might have been murdered…”

His ominous words made me gasp.

Kawakami-san covered his head with both of his hands, and said, “Before he died… He met with a certain man.”

“A certain man…? Was he not part of the cult?”

“He wasn’t. I didn’t know him. For some reason, I can’t remember a single thing regarding his appearance… But his eyes were terrifying… So, so terrifying.”

… His eyes were terrifying. The leader’s eyes were, too. 

Were they similar?

“So he died after meeting with that man?”

“… Yes. I went to the leader’s room a short while after their meeting and found him dead…”

Kawakami-san clutched his head, putting so much strength in his thin, wrinkled arms that it made the veins stand out.

My heart was pounding unpleasantly, and I grew dizzy again.

“I was the first to discover his body. I told the executives of the founder’s death, but the organization was in a terrible state of chaos, and they thought if the believers were to find out the founder was dead, it would only make matters worse… So they ordered me to hide the body.”

“Wha…” My eyes widened in shock.

“… I helped the executives hide the body… B-But I got scared… And ran away in the middle of the night.”

Ran away from the base, got into a train, and went as far as he could.

It was during his stay there that Kawakami-san learned of the cult’s collapse… Apparently.

“… After that, I hid the fact that I belonged to a cult, and lived my life moving from place to place. But… As the years caught up with me, I couldn’t live with my sins anymore…”

I should have reported this, Kawakami-san lamented.

He knew of the leader and executives’ wrongdoings.

Lots of lives could have been saved if he’d reported them.

He could have prevented the suffering the believers and their families had to endure.

Believing that he had to atone for those people, he came back here and started collecting trash.

“I felt so relieved when I found out I didn’t have long to live… I thought that I could finally be forgiven.”

Kawakami-san leaned forward and spoke in a soft voice.

“… I’m sorry.”

He wasn’t apologizing to anyone in particular, but his voice was stained by his tears.

“I’m so sorry…”

I couldn’t find it in me to blame him for anything as he shook like that.

I put my hand on his frail back and softly patted him.

That’s right. Because you didn’t do anything, Taiki, my 12-year-old brother, had to take action despite all his pain.

Maybe I should have actually said something like that.

My life was turned upside down because of the lies you people believed.

Maybe I should have yelled that.

But I couldn’t.

Kawakami-san was so much smaller than me as he cried and apologized…

And he was one of the people who helped me when I first got to this era.

I couldn’t just pretend those things aren’t true.

All I could do is endure this bottomless feeling of emptiness in my heart.

Who?

Who should I blame?

How can I relieve myself of this feeling?

No matter how much I curse and blame humans’ weakness and stupidity, I can’t bring back the past that’s long gone.

“… The police couldn’t figure out how the leader died in the end?” I asked, trying to hold back the feelings swirling in my chest.

I just wanted some information, no matter how small, on the cult and its leader. Just in case I’d be able to connect it to Taiki.

“Not even the police could figure it out,” Kawakami-san said, sobbing, “But if he was killed… No one other than that man could have done it like that.”

“Like what…?”

Kawakami-san shivered as he remembered what happened on that day.

And then, he looked at the flower in my pocket.

“The founder’s corpse… Had a gaping heart-shaped hole on its chest.”

A heart-shaped hole?

I frowned, not able to picture that.

“And… There were flowers inside his head.”

“Flowers… inside his head?”

How?

I felt chills go down my spine and an inexplicable sense of fear imagining it for even just a second.

I dropped my gaze to the flower in my pocket.

The orange tulip Hachinoya-san gave me was nothing but a beautiful thing.

“Would you like some more water?” I asked Kawakami-san, who was wiping his tears.

I don’t think that would relieve him of his pain when he was so close to death.

Did the fact that he was able to confess his sin to a young man whose name happened to be Tao bring him any relief?

I don’t think I’d ever be able to tell.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1.5: The Man Who Knew Too Much - Track 2: Terminal Diagnosis

“Everyone’s going cray-cray over the new SPF game!”

When I went back to our room, Chihiro said that to me as he lay on his bed, scrolling through his phone.

As expected of someone as well-informed as him. He already found out.

“The game’s been around since the Heisei era, right? Have ya ever played it, Tao?”

I grunted affirmatively when he innocently asked me that.

“I’m from the generation that started with SPF2.”

When I said that, Chihiro looked like he was going to drop the candy stick he had in his mouth.

“Seriously? You must be hyped then,” he said for some reason.

“The new one’s Eleven right? It’s got a looong history.”

“Back in my time, SPF2 had taken the world by storm. I used to play it at home with my brother, too. And I’d play Three, which was just released back then, with my buddies at the arcade.”

My little brother and best friend’s faces flashed in the back of my mind.

—I don’t wanna play anymore! You’re too good, Tao-nii!. I’d laugh as my little brother complained.

—Are you serious? Don’t you think you could enter a tournament? Goz would say, and Kinari would occasionally follow along. 

I could forget all the unpleasant things that happened in my family while I was playing games.

SPF was something that I was particularly passionate about. It was simple, yet deep, and interesting… In short, that game had saved me.

“I’m no expert on fighting games, but SPF’s controls have always been the same, right? Won’t you get used to it right away? Wanna try entering a tournament? Your viewers keep telling you to enter some kinda tournament too.” Chihiro said and sat up, almost as if he was talking about his own life instead of mine.

I sat down on my own bed and faced him.

“Well… I guess since I got to Master Rank in AniGun for this season, you could say my goal’s achieved for now.”

“Your gaming streams are like, crazy popular. It’s insane, yanno? You’re an idol, you show your face, and you still play like you’re a pro.”

“You’re always saying that, y’know. Thanks.”

My streaming account is actually pretty popular.

It’s not as popular as Chihiro’s, but it still gets decent numbers. A lot of people tune in; not just Ev3ns fans, but also people who are purely into gaming. 

There’s also a lot of people who have become fans of Ev3ns because of my streams.

I’ve definitely got a run-of-the-mill face, but maybe because I’m an idol, lots of people treat me kinda like a “handsome streamer”.

… To be honest, I don’t feel very good about that, but Chihiro calls it a great marketing strategy.

The income I make from streaming made for a nice bit of pocket money.

I really wasn’t doing anything out of the ordinary, though.

I’m just playing games normally, and I pick comments to reply to and chat with the viewers while warming up.

Sometimes I’d invite a member of Ev3ns to guest and play co-op with me. Obviously, lots of Ev3ns fans tune in when that happens.

The other day, I played MaruCar with Raito-san, and the number of viewers we’d racked up was insane.

People couldn’t stop talking about Raito-san’s weird play-style and the hilarity that came out of me assisting him, and a lot of clips went viral.

“You’re right. Maybe I’ll give that a try when SPF11 comes out.”

“You should sign up for REV, then. Let’s get you used to competitive events ASAP.”

“Rev?”

I asked him about the unfamiliar word he just said, and he explained that it’s ‘the world’s largest fighting game event’.

I opened the info he sent to my phone, and saw that REV had organized tournaments for  various fighting games, and SPF11 was amongst them.

“Lessee… What’s the prize for winning in SPF11~”

Chihiro suddenly widened his eyes as he looked that up.

“Holy guacamole! This equals, like, 200 million JPN yen!”

I couldn’t believe my ears.

“Wh-What did you just say?”

“200 million! I’m getting goosebumps, Tao! If you won, you’d instantly become a millionaire!”

It was such a huge amount that my brain couldn’t process it.

Back in my time, it was impossible to imagine someone winning 200 million just ‘cause they’re good at fighting games.

That reminded me of a conversation I once had with my little brother.

If gaming was a job–

You’d be making billions, Tao-nii, was what Taiki had told me.

Maybe that could become true now.

As I sat there in a daze, Chihiro yelled out my name and jumped onto my bed to sit next to me.

“Let’s get that 200 mil!”

The words spilled out of me as I looked at Chihiro’s sparkling amber eyes: “If I get that 200  million… D’you think I could buy a time machine?”

Chihiro’s eyes widened when he heard me.

“Ah… Nevermind. That’s impossible, huh.” I gave a strained laugh and tried to cover what I’d said.

But Chihiro’s eyes wavered for a second, as if he was trying to guess what I was feeling.

Sorry, that was weird.

I tried to say that, but I thought it’d be digging my own grave if I did, and kept my mouth closed.

Chihiro smiled and immediately changed the subject, “But! Becoming a pro fighting gamer would probs be good for you!”

“Even better than FPS?”

I didn’t know the first thing about this scene, so I asked Chihiro to elaborate.

“I think younger peeps are better at FPS. There’s, like, a lot of teenagers who go pro. But fighting games have a wider age range.”

“I see.”

“If you fight well at the tournament, you might even be scouted in a blink.”

“I dunno if I could balance that along with being an idol and a Ward Mayor.”

“Don’t you worry oooneee biiit. If anything, it’d make you even more popular.”

You’ve got a lot of subscribers already, but we gotta get you more! Chihiro enthusiastically exclaimed.

Almost as if he were talking about himself.

“I’m not saying this to flatter you, but you really gotta be more aware of your own strengths, as like, both as a singer and a streamer, yanno? You should do some singing streams!”

“What’s that?”

“Streams where you sing, c’mon. You’re good at singing. It’ll be like my dance streams.”

“I see.”

“Do you reallyyyy….?”

I smiled wryly at Chihiro, who leaned forward like a cat standing on its paws.

“I do, I do… Go easy on me, okay?”

Just seeing him have fun looking after me was enough to cheer me up. I'm grateful for that, I thought to myself

Back then… SPF had basically saved me.

I keep looking back to when I told my chat that I’d be playing SPF11 and participating in a tournament, and everyone in the comments had gone crazy.

I decided to go to the arcade by myself since I had the afternoon off from Ev3ns practice. I remembered how I’d told my chat that I’d be playing SPF11 and participating in a tournament, and everyone in the comments that day had gone crazy. 

I thought I’d try out SPF10 before the new one came out. I even asked Ryui-san and Hachinoya-san if they wanted to come with, but they both had work.

Ryui-san aside, Hachinoya-san was really disappointed he couldn’t come.

—I’m sorry, I’m basically nothing but a florist. He had said.

No, no, it’s not that big of a deal…

He gave me an orange tulip this time, unlike the verbena he had dropped before.

—I actually wanted to give you 13 of them, but that might’ve been presumptuous of me, so…

Hachinoya-san looked embarrassed for some reason, but he still told me with conviction:

“Let that little guy witness your efforts.”

I decided to take the flower with me and put it in my pocket. It was probably strange to bring a flower to the arcade, but I couldn’t refuse when he put it like that.

As I was walking, I saw someone crouching on the side of the road.

“Kawakami-san!?”

Kawakami-san, one of the people I pretty much owed my life to and who I had spoken to just the other way, was looking unwell and on the verge of collapsing.

I rushed over to his side to help him.

“Are you alright!? Should I call an ambulance?”

Kawakami-san was pale, and he was holding his stomach in pain.

“… I-I’m fine… There’s medicine, in my pocket…”

I shouted out an apology and searched through his pockets. Inside, I found a bottle of pills that seemed to be some kind of obviously strong painkillers you couldn’t get from a local pharmacy.

“I have an unopened water bottle with me, please drink it!”

I handed Kawakami-san the bottle of water I’d taken with me before leaving the dorm, and he thanked me with a hoarse voice before taking his medicine.

I wondered how much time had passed.

I kept rubbing Kawakami-san’s back until his pain finally subsided, and I helped him sit on a nearby bench.

Kawakami-san was thin. I thought he might be even thinner than Chihiro, and that thought made me nervous.

“Are you really sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?”

“Yes, I am. My illness is incurable, you see… All I have left is palliative care, and I don’t have much time left. If I can no longer move, I’ll let myself be hospitalized and go out quietly… But until then, I simply want to atone for my sins.” 

I was so shocked by what Kawakami-san had said that I couldn’t reply for a while.

“But… But if it’s that bad, then you shouldn’t be out here cleaning.”

I owe my life to this person. And yet, he’s so close to losing his own.

I was conflicted, and my heart ached. But I thought expressing my own selfish feelings would be wrong in this situation.

“... Maybe. But I can’t do that. I once brought misfortune to many people in this city.”

I didn’t understand.

But I also didn’t know if I could ask any further questions.

As I sat there hesitating, Kawakami-san put his wrinkled, warm hand on top of my own and patted it, as if to comfort me.

His hand was pale and light… That was the hand of someone close to dying, I thought.

Kawakami-san looked at the tulip in my pocket.

“Oh… A friend gave me this flower,” I said.

“I see,” Kawakami-san replied.

That reminded me, Kawakami-san was staring pretty intently at the flower bed the other day too.

Just like back then, he looked away from the flowers again and turned his gaze downward.

“Tao-kun. If you wouldn’t mind… Could I tell you about the crime I committed? … I’d like someone to know about it before I pass on.” He squeezed out his words painfully.

Since I was already wondering if I could ask what he had meant, I didn’t see any reason to refuse.

“If it’s alright with you, I’ll listen.” I said as sincerely as I could.

I’d accept anything he’d tell me.

Or so I thought.

“… I used to belong to a certain organization that was based here in this city.”

For some reason, when he said that, I started to have a bad, bad feeling.

“You’re young, so you probably haven’t heard of it,” Kawakami-san continued, 

“But it was a cult by the name of Lumière de Cosmos.”

… For a moment, I felt as though I was going to throw up.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3

NOTES

(1) marucar is a reference to mario kart

(2) rev is a reference to the evo tournaments, the largest fighting game tournaments in the world

(3) according to greensnap, an orange tulip means 'a shy/bashful person', giving 13 tulips to someone means 'eternal friendship'

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1.5: The Man Who Knew Too Much - Track 1: Days of Atonement

recommended reading: Tao Kinouchi Novel S1 (Back to the 99), Netaro Yowa Novel S1 (The Great Detective Netaro!)

It’d been a while since we last had a full day off as Ev3ns.

I was going to meet up with Ryui-san at the nearby arcade.

Chihiro said he’d go to his favorite café with Kinari and Kuguri-san, and Raito-san said he’d check out a ramen shop that opened recently.

Obviously, he seemed a little dejected when Nayuki-san declined his invitation to come with.

I was sorta impressed by how he never seemed to give up.

That’s why I didn’t invite any of the other members, so when Ryui-san sent a message saying he’s heading to the arcade, I replied that I’ll get ready to go too.

As I was putting on my shoes at the front door, Hachinoya-san walked in with an armful of flowers wrapped in a bouquet.

Hachinoya-san had a bird’s nest on his head and a scratch on his cheek, but he acted as though that’s a regular occurrence. I felt a little bad for him.

“Are you alright? Should I bring you some bandages?”

“Oh, Tao. I’m fine. Today, I fell in a puddle and then I ran into a tree and this bird’s nest fell on me, but it looks like the chicks already flew away, so it’s served its purpose.”

“That’s not what I asked… Well, I’m glad you didn’t get hurt too badly.” 

He gave me a big thumbs up, so he must be fine.

Hachinoya-san always ended up getting himself into unfortunate situations, but he was pretty headstrong and strangely positive despite that. I admired him for it.

A flower fell from his bouquet, and I picked it up. It was purple with small flowers clustered together, almost like a hydrangea.

“That’s a verbena. Did it fall off? Thanks.”

“Did you close shop for the day? I’m meeting up with Ryui-san at the arcade, so if you’re free you should come too, Hachinoya-san.”

Hachinoya-san’s eyes widened when I said that, and he started trembling a little.

“Um… What’s wrong…?”

“Thank you for inviting someone like me. I never thought something as miraculous as being invited to an arcade like we just got out of school would happen to me…”

“I don’t think it’s that big of a deal, though…”

Hachinoya-san spent the next few minutes looking really emotional, but he apparently still had some work to do. When I told him I’d invite him again next time, he started tearing up. 

What a commendable guy.

I left the dorm thinking that I should invite him properly next time.

On my way to the arcade, I spotted a flower bed.

The same verbena I had picked up earlier was in bloom there. Alongside the purple ones, there were also red and pink ones.

Although they did look familiar, I hadn’t known their name until now.

Just then, an old man entered my view from the other side of the flower bed. I was pretty sure I’d seen him cleaning around there before, too.

He wasn’t wearing a uniform that would identify him as a volunteer or an actual janitor, so he must’ve been doing it out of his own free will.

More importantly… I was certain I’d met him somewhere before. 

Curious, I stopped walking.

When I first arrived in this era, I was lost, helpless, and overwhelmed by everything around me.

That old man saved me back then… I think.

But the last time I tried to talk to him, he ran away.

Maybe he hadn’t recognized me, and thought talking to me would be an inconvenience.

So, I let out a sigh, bowed, and walked past him without saying anything

The sun was strong, and the old man was carrying a pretty lofty number of garbage bags, so I was worried about him… 

My worries won out against me and I turned around, only to see the old man about to topple over.

“Watch out!”

I ran over to the old man to support him before he fell, but the trash inside the bag spilled all over the ground.

“I-I’m sorry…”  The old man apologized, getting back on his feet.

… Sorry, Ryui-san. I can’t just leave him alone.

I offered to help the old man and started picking up the spilled trash, despite his objections.

I told him I’d go bring more bags to carry the trash in as the old man kept apologizing profusely. Honestly, I was doing this of my own free will, so I wished he’d stop.

“This isn’t the first time you’ve cleaned up around here, is it?” I asked the old man, and he told me he’s made a habit of cleaning various places in HAMA.

“Could I ask for your name? Mine’s Tao.”

The old man seemed surprised for a second after I told him my name.

“Is something wrong?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. My name is Kawakami.”

I said Kawakami-san’s name back to him, getting used to the pronunciation, and he looked a little embarrassed.

“Um… Actually, I think we’ve spoken once before, some years ago.”

Kawakami-san’s eyes widened at my words.

“… Well, uh. There was a time I lived on the streets. I was in a new place, with no roof over my head or food to eat, so I was wandering around all over the place…”

On the day my parents had transported me to this era…

I wandered aimlessly, not knowing what to do.

No matter where I looked, there wasn’t anything or anyone I recognized. 

That was when I realized this wasn’t the same world I knew.

As I looked at all the information the city had to offer, I got the vague understanding that I’d been thrown into the future…

With no home or money to my name, I figured the only choice I had left was to die.

I couldn’t help but laugh. Guess I’m really not God’s child or anything like that.

… Will I go back to my original time if I die here?

The thought crossed my mind.

Even if I didn’t, if I were to miserably starve to death on the side of the road, I’d get to meet my parents.

Told you so, I’d tell them, you were wrong. You sent me off on God’s Ark, and it just made me miserable.

Even though that’s what I thought, reality was so harsh that it sapped all of my energy to curse my parents, to worry about Taiki, or to apologize to Goz. 

I was hungry… and I was ashamed of myself.

I couldn’t go on feeling all those emotions, all this fury… So all I could do was put a lid on it.

Just as I was thinking that I wouldn’t mind dropping dead after all, a stranger gave me some bread.

He told me that if I had nowhere to go, he could show me to a mutual aid community for people that lived on the streets.

That stranger was Kawakami-san.

Nothing felt real back then. It felt like I was living deep under the sea and my memory of Kawakami-san was vague, but now that I’d spoken to him, I was sure of it.

Kawakami-san was the person who had given me some sweet bread, and said—

“You’re still young. You shouldn’t give up just yet.”

“… Thank you very much for back then. I’ve always wanted to thank you. I tried looking for you, but my memories of that time are hazy. The people in the mutual aid community you introduced me to were super helpful, so I wanted to properly show my gratitude to them too.”

Although I still hadn’t done that since all the members of that community came and went as they’d pleased and I ended up serving time in prison.

Kawakami-san was pretty shocked when I told him all that.

“So you’re the boy from back then…”

“Yes. Please let me repay you somehow, and I don’t just mean by helping with this,” I offered as I put the garbage bags in the trash. 

I’d never been able to stop thinking about it, but Kawakami-san just smiled and shook his head.

“It’s alright. Just knowing you’re alive is enough for me.”

“But…”

“Please, don’t insist. That bit of kindness I showed you isn’t enough to atone for my sins.”

This time, it was my turn to be shocked by what I heard.

“… Your sins?”

“I’ve decided to spend the rest of my life atoning…” For some reason, Kawakami-san glanced at the flower bed as he said so.

The freshly bloomed verbenas swayed with the breeze.

As he looked at them, Kawakami-san’s face darkened, and he looked down as if to push the flowers away from his sight.

… With all that said and done, I ended up being 15 minutes late. 

I had sent a message to Ryui-san but I still felt bad, so I explained the entire situation once I got there.

The arcade was full of people today, and the two of us sat across from each other in a fighting game.

“You were helpin’ someone weren’t you? You don’t gotta apologize.” Ryui-san dryly,  brushing off my apology.

He may be harsh, but he’s actually a very nice person. I’m grateful I get to play fighting games with him.

Chihiro may be into FPS, but he didn’t like fighting games as much.

On the other hand, though, Ryui-san’s love for fighting games is second to none, so we play against each other often.

Within HAMA House, Ushio is a big MMO fan and I get to play MotG with Yukikaze-san, so it’s a perfect place for me.

Ryui-san and I had just finished a best-of-10 game, and were taking a break.

In a best-of-10, the first to get 10 wins was the winner. I’d won this time, but Ryui-san had won 6 times, too. 

It was a pretty close match.

“I lost again. You’re seriously somethin’ else,” Ryui-san said, frustration clear in his voice.

“You’re really good at this too, Ryui-san. Your anti-airs are crazy fast.”

“Well, yeah, I’ve spent hours practicing this. But are you hearin’ yourself here? Your counter had me in deep shit.”

Ryui-san crossed his arms.

“The pressure you put on me in that last match was tough shit. You look like a goody-two-shoes, but you fight nasty.”

“I get really serious when I’m gaming, I think…”

“Well, I don’t dislike that part of you.”

I felt a little embarrassed having Ryui-san praise me.

“By the way, they’ll be adding a new character to this series next month.”

“Maybe our characters will get an update too. Hopefully not some shitty nerf.”

“That’d seriously suck.”

We always got all excited talking about our favorite games like this whenever we met up.

Having someone to talk to like this was pretty much the meaning of happiness for me.

We’d spent too much time here, though, so we started getting ready to go back home. 

Just then, a commotion spread through the arcade.

“There’s a new SPF coming out!”

“Deadass!? They’ve been teasing it for ages!”

Some people started yelling, and soon the entire arcade was up in arms. Even Ryui-san had opened his phone to look up whether or not it was real.

“You serious? I’ve been avoiding 2D fighters lately, but if there’s a new one comin’ out, I ain’t gonna say no…”

SPF…

I looked it up myself, and froze.

“Kinouchi?”

Ryui-san was looking at me with a confused expression.

But I was overcome with a strong emotion beyond what I could put in words.

I felt as though all those memories I’d closed under a lid were slowly peeking their heads out from behind it.

“A new SPF game…” were the only words I could muster.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3

NOTES

(1) a purple verbena in japanese flower language means regret

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1: Back To The 99 - Track 5: Souta Gozu

“Tao, what’s up? Are you okay?”

The trio of high schoolers that passed by had already disappeared into the crowd.

I hadn’t realized that I was clenching my fists tightly and my nails were digging into my skin.

The person standing next to me was neither Goz nor Taiki. It was Chihiro.

Chihiro Natsuyaki.

My new… best friend, probably? In this era I’d been thrown into.

“... Hey, Chihiro.”

I thought that maybe it was time to shine a light on the things I’ve been avoiding and trying not to think about.

So, I spoke up.

“I want you to come somewhere with me.”

“... There it is.”

I had Chihiro follow me to a large library. 

Here, you could find information about almost every past incident.

It’s been three years since I was thrown into this era. At first, I was just doing my best to survive and didn’t have time to process what had happened to me.

In the depths of my heart, I was filled with resentment, bitterness, and anger towards my parents to the point that I was cursing their existence, but I was also tormented by a violent emptiness.

But after three years here, all those exhausting feelings have worn away.

I was put in prison and somehow ended up becoming an idol. 

It was only after I had a roof over my head and a stable income that I had finally stopped to think that I needed to know what happened in the era I used to live in.

If I were to be honest, I was always curious.

But I didn’t have the courage to face it.

No matter what I do, it’s all in the past from the perspective of this era.

No matter how much I regret it, I can’t do anything about it.

What if, after I never returned home, my little brother Taiki suffered through a difficult life and died?

And what about Goz?

What if, because I never apologized, Goz was left with regrets…?

How would I recover from that?

But I felt that putting it off any longer would be wrong.

I thought it’d be a good opportunity to face my past now that I had some sudden free time.

With Chihiro’s help, I searched through the library’s old data.

I started by narrowing down my search to 1999.

And what I found was an article about an incident involving the church my parents belonged to.

— “Executives of religious organization “Lumière de Cosmos” arrested under suspicion of murdering their own child”.

I gasped at the headline of one of the newspapers, and Chihiro looked at me anxiously from the seat next to me.

“Tao, you okay…? Can you read it? Do you want me to read it for you?”

“... No, I’m alright. I can read it myself.”

I swallowed my nerves and continued reading.

The child mentioned here is me, I think.

And the executives… Is that what my parents were?

As I dug through the newspapers of the time, I found more and more details of the incident.

… The two cult executives are being accused of killing their eldest son (high school student, 17), in a park near their home, and then abandoning the body.

The body is still being accounted for, but the circumstantial evidence is enough to press charges against the couple—

… The first person to accuse the pair was their youngest son (12). According to his testimony…

“Taiki… You were the one who accused them?”

I ended up whispering to myself.

Just how much courage did that take out of my brother, who was so young at the time?

This incident eventually led to police raids uncovering various fraudulent activities, and the cult was dismantled.

That happened in 2000.

The organization that had tormented me and Taiki for over a dozen years had collapsed and become a thing of the past in just a year.

But what kickstarted everything was Taiki’s accusation.

…You said you’d expose everything the cult had done, and you really did it.

If Taiki was here, that’s what I would say to him.

I’m not sure if it would be okay to praise him or be genuinely happy for him.

I imagine Taiki had to make huge sacrifices in order to speak up. At the very least, he had to have completely cut ties with our parents.

I seriously regret not being able to be by his side at a time like that/having been unable to be by his side at a time like that.

“... Tao, you okay?” Chihiro asked softly.

I silently nodded and, with new-found determination, looked up my little brother’s name.

My heart was beating so hard I thought it would burst out of my chest.

The seconds it took for the search results to show up felt like an hour, two hours, even.

But the search… resulted in nothing.

Obviously, at the time of my murder and the cult’s dismantlement, Taiki was a minor, so his name was never made public. Therefore, none of the articles I had just read came up, and no articles past that time did either.

That meant… I didn’t even know if he was still alive or not.

“Obituaries… don’t always show up, do they?”

“... I’ve heard that if the person themself or their family has approved for their data to be viewed, it’d at least show whether they’ve passed away or not.”

Chihiro explained with a rather unsure look on his face. 

Then, he leaned a little forward and looked into my eyes.

“He’s alive… I’m sure! Let’s try finding him some other way. I’ll help, too!”

And then, Chihiro continued, “If you become a famous idol, your little brother will for sure find out! Let’s become so famous that we’ll appear on national TV every day! I will definitely, absolutely, bring you in front of the cameras, Tao!”

“S-Sure… You kinda sound like a pitcher promising to take me to Nationals...”

Chihiro’s positive attitude reminded me of a manga I had read a long time ago. It was kind of comforting.

… Right.

There’s no point in worrying about things I can’t figure out. For now, I know that Taiki indicted my parents and that the cult had disappeared.

I’ll try to figure out what happened in Taiki’s life after that.

That’s what I’ve decided deep within my heart:

If I become a famous idol, maybe Taiki will find me. I decided to gamble on that possibility.

“... Is there anything else you wanna look into?”

Chihiro, who had raised his voice earlier, asked me softly. He looked at me with concern in his eyes.

His kindness is a different kind than Goz’s, I think.

“... Anything else…”

There is one more thing.

I mustered up the courage to place my fingers on the keyboard and type the name in.

The search came back with one result.

— “Souta Gozu: Confirmation of Death…”

I closed the computer before I could read the entire title.

For a moment, all was silent.

Then, I felt like I was punched in the gut.

— Souta Gozu: Confirmation of Death

I shivered. I couldn’t feel my fingers.

“... Tao.”

Chihiro’s voice sounded concerned.

I had a feeling that if I looked at him now, I would start crying.

“Oh, yeah. I promised I’d help out at Natsume-san’s shop for a while today.”

As if he could understand how I felt, Chihiro didn’t say anything.

“Sorry, Chihiro, can we go out for lunch next time?”

“Yups, got it. Don’t worry about it~ I’ll go eat at a DZ spot~.” Chihiro said cheerfully, and I took advantage of his reply.

I’m sorry, Chihiro. But I just can’t think about anything else.

The only thing in my head were the words “Souta Gozu. Confirmation of death.”, replaying over and over.

By the time I left the library, night had fallen.

… There’s no way it’d just be someone else with the same first and last name. It’s such a rare name.

I thought to myself as I absent-mindedly polished a glass at Yumejuuya.

— Goz is dead, isn’t he?

When did he die? How did he die? What kind of life did he live? What was Goz thinking when he was left waiting at our meeting place on the day I disappeared?

I had no way of knowing now.

My hands stopped moving. 

No, I have to do my job properly, I thought and quickly picked up the glass again. Right then, Natsume-san, the owner, said, “You can leave now.”

“The bartender will be here soon. … Very nice, it’s well polished. It’s as beautiful as your heart, Tao.”

“Ahaha… No, I’m just some guy.”

Natsume-san is a generous person. Even if I don’t help much, he gives me a part-timer’s pay.

I thought that was bad at first, but I don’t really have a job other than being a Ward Mayor, so I was seriously grateful for the opportunity.

When I changed out of my waiter uniform and stepped outside, I felt a cold wind.

At night, people’s laughter could be heard like distant ripples throughout this city of neon, twinkling lights.

— Goz… If you were still alive…

I wonder if we’d be drinking together?

The thought crossed my mind, even though there was no point in wondering.

I still couldn’t process anything.

Not Goz’s death, or my parents’ fate, or anything Taiki did.

I’m glad that I got to find out what happened back then, and that I was able to face it. But at the same time, I didn’t know what I should do from now on.

In any case, I have to live in the present of this era.

… I understood that, but the shock of Goz’s death was a feeling I had yet to digest.

“Tao-kun!”

Someone called out to me and I turned around. 

It was the bartender, Yunyun-san, running towards me from the bar’s entrance.

“Um, did I forget something?” I asked.

“No, there was something I kept thinking about asking you, and then I saw you out here,” Yunyun-san replied with a laugh, and then stopped in front of me.

He pretty much glared at me, and then whispered:

“Tao-kun, is there a place you want to go back to?”

All I could mutter in response to that question was, “What…”

What do you mean? Go back to, where, exactly? … To when, exactly?

When I looked back up at him, Yunyun-san was smiling brightly.

“Just what I expected from a 20-year-old! Such an honest reaction! That’s exactly what I wanted to see. See ya later, good work today~”

Was that a joke? Or some kind of prank, or experiment? I had no idea what Yunyun-san was trying to do.

I felt a tap on my shoulder, and next thing I knew, I was standing alone on the street.

As I started feeling better, I decided I’d apologize to Chihiro when I returned to the dorm.

I didn’t want to have to repeat what happened with Goz.

I’ll tell Chihiro, “I’m sorry we couldn’t eat together. Let’s go out tomorrow.”

— I have to live life in this era to the fullest, was the thought that came to me.

If I could go back in time, back to that last night of June 1999…

I would shake off my parents’ hands and grab Taiki’s. We would run out of the house and go to the park, where Goz would be waiting. And then the three of us would jump.

We would run, and run, and run from the prophecy of the Great King of Terror… And then, I would return to my ordinary daily life.

I’d return to those days… with Goz, Kinari and Taiki.

There was no point in thinking about it.

But I still couldn’t let go of this impossible dream of mine.

— I’ll search for Taiki.

I swore to myself.

I’ll search for him, so that I can give back for everything I couldn’t do for him.

So that I can connect the days I spent in the past with the days I’m spending here.

What can I do in order to achieve that?

I slipped through the crowds downtown and found myself in the residential area where the stars were still visible.

There was no one on board behind me urging me to pedal harder anymore, but still…

Look ahead and keep going, Tao.

I felt like I could hear a voice telling me that from somewhere.

I continued forward, one heavy step at a time.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3 | Track 4 | Track 5

NOTES:

(1) lumière de dosmos was 宇宙(ソラ)ノ光 in the jp text, i chose to translate it to french because nothing in english made it look as fitting for a cult, and because nostradamus himself was french

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1: Back To The 99 - Track 4: Wednesday, June 30, 1999

CW: Religious fanaticism

— Wednesday, June 30, 1999

I involuntarily let out another sigh.

I didn’t go to school today.

Taiki’s fever had gone down, but he still seemed under the weather.

“Tao-nii, enough… Go to school…”

Taiki had told me that in the afternoon after his condition had calmed down.

“I already skipped morning classes, there’s no point in me going now,” I said and stayed home.

And in case you’re wondering, our parents hadn’t come home at all since the night before.

After Taiki fell asleep due to the side effects of the medicine I had given him just to be safe, I sat alone in the living room, staring at my phone.

Should I call Goz or not? Should I apologize, even if it’s through an e-mail?

“... What am I even gonna do tonight?” I muttered.

I actually had plans with Goz later that night.

About two months ago, the two of us were having lunch at school when we started talking about the King of Terror’s prophecy, and I told Goz,

“I don’t know what my parents will do the moment July arrives. They seriously believe in that prophecy.”

There are people out there who believed in this prophecy so much that they became desperate, and there are people who vowed they’d spend all their money by the time June ended. There were even TV specials.

Our generation has been hearing about this prophecy for our whole lives. Even if we didn’t believe in it, we still felt a vague sense of fear when we heard the words “July 1999”.

I may be a skeptic myself, but I honestly didn’t know what would happen to my parents, who believed in it blindly.

“I don’t wanna be home on that day.”

I had complained to Goz, and as if he just had a great idea, he said, “You don’t gotta be!”

“Let’s sneak out in the middle of the night and jump together the moment July hits!”

“Jump…? This ain't New Year’s Eve.”

“It’s cool, maybe the King of Terror will let us off the hook if our feet aren’t touching the ground?”

It was a silly, ridiculous suggestion.

But the way Goz talked about it with so much excitement was somehow comforting. I knew that jumping the moment the clock struck midnight wouldn’t help me figure out what to do with my parents, and it wouldn’t alleviate Taiki’s pain.

But seeing Goz smile as he talked about it… I felt as though my problems were so simple that they could be solved just by jumping.

“Then, let’s do it. If I remember.”

“Huh? What’s that, Tao? You want me to write our plans on your forehead? Make sure you remember.”

It was just a light-hearted promise, so Goz might have already forgotten about it.

Just as I was wondering what I should do, my phone beeped with a notification as I received an e-mail.

“Minami-cho Park. 11:55PM. If you don’t come, I’ll beat the crap out of you.”

The mail was from Goz.

A smile spread across my face.

I was happy that Goz remembered our promise and was trying to suggest we make up.

I was determined to apologize properly for what happened yesterday when we met.

— I haven’t been able to talk about this with you until now, but the truth is, Taiki hasn’t been going to school.

I can’t rely on my parents.

What can I do for Taiki?

This time, I’d be honest and ask for advice.

Goz is a good guy. If I explained the situation with Taiki and our parents, I was sure he’d understand.

And just like when he laughed and said we should jump, I’m sure he’ll make me feel better this time too.

I looked at the time, it was already 11:30PM.

It wasn’t long before the meeting time Goz suggested, so I just got changed and ready to head out without sending a reply.

When I opened the door to my room, Taiki stood on the other side.

“Taiki, you’re up? How’s your fever?”

“... It’s gone down. Are you going somewhere, Tao-nii?”

I lied and said that I was going to the convenience store.

I figured I’d be home in about 20 minutes, anyway.

I didn’t think I had any reason to tell him about my promise with Goz.

“Want me to get you anything? Like an ice cream?”

Just as I was thinking of actually stopping by the convenience store, a loud noise rang from the entrance.

“Tao! Tao, where are you!?”

The next thing I heard was our parents’ screaming.

Taiki’s face suddenly stiffened.

They came into the house with heavy footsteps, looking for me. They’ve always been aggressive people, but they were especially bad today. 

I hurried downstairs, not wanting to get Taiki involved.

“What? I’m right here! Don’t yell, you’ll disturb the neighbors.”

When I got downstairs, my parents, who I hadn’t seen for some time, were running out of the living room.

Honestly, they were acting strange–

Their hair was messy, their clothes were rumpled, and their eyes were bloodshot.

“There you are! Come on! Hurry!” My mother screamed as she grabbed my arm. She put so much strength into her grasp that I felt my bones were going to crack.

She pulled me and I stumbled forward, my phone slipping out of my pocket.

“Hold on, what are you doing…”

“Hurry! We don’t have time!”

My father grabbed my other arm and tugged me with incredible force.

When I turned around, I saw Taiki watching the scene with a pale face.

It’s okay. I’ll be back in no time.

I didn’t say it out loud, but I tried to convey it with my expression.

I figured that they’d make a commotion and scare Taiki if I resisted, so I followed them obediently.

I barely had time to put on my shoes before I was taken to a park near our house. It was a dark place filled with trees.

A huge coffin was placed there.

“By God’s will! As God’s child! You have the right to board this “Ark”!”

“You don’t have to worry, this is a machine created by God that can transcend time by channelling the energy in space. The church inherited this “Ark” from the cosmos!”

“They wouldn’t lend it to us no matter how much we paid, so we brought it here in secret! Mom and Dad don’t mind becoming sacrifices. You’re the only one who has to go to where God is!”

I couldn’t understand a thing they were saying.

Their eyes weren’t entirely there, but I couldn’t match up their strength–

Before I knew it, I was shoved into the coffin.

“Hey, hold on, I…”

— I made a promise.

And I have to stay by Taiki’s side.

I wanted to say that, but I couldn’t.

My parents closed the coffin’s lid.

Once I heard a loud noise and realized the lid was locked, I blanked out and everything went dark.

Huh? Are my screw-loose parents finally going to kill me?

My parents were still making some kind of noise on the other side of the coffin, so I banged on the lid and yelled, “Let me out! Let me out!”

I was late for my meeting with Goz. 

I didn’t have my phone on me because I dropped it when my parents dragged me. I haven’t even replied to the mail.

— I want to see him, I want to apologize and make up.

… And there’s also Taiki to think about.

If he starts crying…

Just as I thought that, a sharp pain struck my head.

My vision started to falter, and I felt my consciousness fade.

I can’t remember anything after that.

When I woke up–

I had been thrown into an unfamiliar city in the future.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3 | Track 4 | Track 5

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1: Back To The 99 - Track 3: Tuesday, June 29, 1999 / 3

CW: Parental neglect, religious fanaticism, doomsday prophecy

“I’m home.”

I always got a little nervous saying those words after I got home.

I used to worry that my parents would come out and say something–

And now, I worry what my little brother, an elementary school student who is probably waiting in here… might think.

My family is a strange one.

If I had to put it bluntly, I’d even say it’s abnormal.

I heard the sound of an electronic device coming from the end of the hallway.

That alone tells me that my little brother is the only one in the house.

If our parents were home, he absolutely wouldn’t have come out of his room.

When I looked down at the floor, I saw my brother’s sneakers in the same place I had seen them in the morning when I left for school.

… Looks like Taiki didn’t go to school today either after all.

I felt a little disappointed when I realized that.

No. I had decided to treat him as normally as possible, whether he went to school or not.

… Although I’m not so sure if that was the right choice.

When I entered the living room, I found my brother sprawled out on the sofa, playing on the Hamicom.

His pajamas were scattered all over the place, along with bags of snacks and instant noodle containers.

Even in this state, our parents wouldn’t spare so much as a glance at Taiki.

As usual, there’s a 5000 yen bill on the dining table.

Our parents would probably be home late again because of a religious gathering. I don’t really know much about it, but it seems they’re high-ranking members.

“Taiki, what do you want for dinner?”

“Pizza. The usual.”

Taiki answered my question without even looking at me.

The usual would be teriyaki chicken and mentaiko mochi.

I called the pizza place from the home landline and placed the order.

I call them so often that I had registered their number as an abbreviated number.

2 is the pizza shop, 3 is the ramen shop, 4 is the soba shop…

As I sat down on the sofa and made sure to avoid Taiki’s legs, my brother sat up and silently handed me the other controller.

“I wanna play SPF2”

“I don’t wanna play that with you, you’ll beat me to a pulp. Let’s keep playing Poyo Poyo,” he said with no hesitation. I followed his lead and we started a battle.

For a while, we were both silent, and the only sounds in the room were the sound of slimy characters bouncing and the flashy sound effects of combo attacks.

But I always worried at times like this. Would it be better if I talked to him?

Should I tell him that he should go to school? Or should I ask him if he wants me to come back home earlier?

— It’s been two weeks since Taiki stopped going to school.

I’d been living my life as normal, but I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

Moreover, I haven’t been able to consult anyone about this. Not even Goz.

“... Did they say anything today?” I couldn’t think of anything else to say, so I just asked him that.

“They probably just prayed today too,” was his cold reply. “I don’t think you noticed because you were sleeping, but they were out of their minds when they left this morning. They were saying something about the coming of the end.”

"Oh... Because of the prophecy of King of Angolmois, I guess."

The world will end in the seventh month of 1999.

They say that it’s according to a great prophet from ages ago. It’s called The Prophecy of Angolmois, the Great King of Terror.

Because of that, our parents have become more and more fanatic lately.

There are also a lot of TV specials on prophecies that seem to be indoctrinating people into taking them seriously.

Goz, simple-minded as he is, got a bit scared.

But I'm more scared of my parents who believe in those prophecies and have been losing their minds every day than I am of the end of the world itself.

Ever since 1999 started, they have been saying things like this:

"Tao must be the only one allowed on the Ark."

"Tao is God's child, after all. The chosen one must survive."

... Taiki was usually nearby whenever my parents said crazy things like that.

And every time I think to myself and question their audacity. "How can they say that? I'm not their only child. Have they really forgotten about Taiki?"

" ... You know the bankbook grandma left behind? I saw Mother take it yesterday. That's bad, right? She probably donated all of it."

I froze after hearing what Taiki said.

Our grandmother was a decent person and passed away a few years ago. She left the bankbook to our parents on her deathbed and told them, "Use it on Tao and Taiki's education, okay?" I knew this because I saw the conversation happen in real time.

"... They even put their hands on grandma's bankbook?"

A dry laugh came out of me before I could stop it.

"It's not fair that children can't choose their parents."

"..."

Taiki pouted, but I couldn't say anything back.

On the TV screen, cute, colorful slimes stuck to each other and popped.

"... I can't imagine myself going to high school or anything like that." Taiki whispered.

"High school's... fun."

"Maybe for you, Tao-nii."

"If I fail the entrance exams, I probably won't be accepted," Taiki continued. I had nothing to say back. I thought that was the case too.

It made me frustrated beyond what words can describe.

"Once I graduate middle school, I'm gonna start working and save up money. Then I'll start a company that distributes news on the internet. I'll expose everything our parents and their cult has done."

"You need to go to high school to start a company."

"I'll make money by playing games instead of studying."

"There's no job like that. If there was, I'd be doing it."

"You'd be making billions, Tao-nii."

For the first time in a while, Taiki laughed innocently.

As I was flooded with joy and relief, Taiki dropped his controller.

Then he groaned and clutched his stomach.

"Taiki!"

I dropped my controller and put my arm around Taiki's shoulder as he fell forward.

My little brother's thin body shook, and he was drenched in sweat.

"Does it hurt? Where? Your stomach?"

"... I don't know, everywhere... Like usual, I think."

When I put my hand on his back to soothe him, I could feel his heart beating rapidly through the skin where his spine was exposed.

I quickly picked him up and carried him to his bed.

This made my head hurt. This isn't the first time this has happened to him.

It happens several times a month, sometimes more than once a week.

I was worried, so I took him to a doctor, but they told me the cause was unknown. The tests were also inconclusive.

Later, they told me it was a psychosomatic illness.

Basically, it was stress.

Every time this happens, Taiki gets a fever. This time was no different.

I tried looking for an antipyretic, but it seems the one we used last time was the last one. I was at my wit's end and wondered if I should go out to buy some.

But when I went to Taiki's bedside and placed my hand on his burning forehead, he grabbed the hem of my shirt without saying a word.

After seeing my little brother in pain and with tears in his eyes like that, I couldn't bring myself to tell him that I'd leave to get some medication.

I started to become aware of my powerlessness.

... Why does Taiki have to go through this?

It'd be better if I was the one ignored by our parents.

If it was me, he wouldn't have to endure this pain.

... I'm cold-hearted. Because of that, I gave up on our parents a long time ago. I don't get so stressed that it'd show on my body...

But I can only say that because no matter how twisted it is, I'm "loved" by them. I'll probably never understand how Taiki truly feels, his existence having been ignored ever since the moment he was born.

"Nii-chan's gonna prepare an ice pack," I said and left Taiki's side. I could tell he was watching me leave with anxious eyes.

I went down to the kitchen on the first floor and put ice in a plastic bag. My heart ached with frustration.

Right then, I heard my phone's carefree ringtone.

"... Sorry for making you go out of your way to buy medicine. You're a huge help."

I opened the front door and bowed my head.

The call was from Goz. He just wanted to talk about tomorrow's classes and other mundane things.

He noticed I sounded gloomy and asked me what's wrong, so despite hesitating, I managed to ask him to buy some medicine for Taiki.

"C'mon, it's fine. ... Is your little brother okay?"

"It happens all the time... I gave him the medicine just now, so he'll probably fall asleep soon."

The reason for his fevers is his mind, so sometimes taking medicine doesn't fix it. But just taking them seems to make Taiki feel more at ease.

"Hey... This is just something I heard through the grapevine, but... Is your brother not going to school?"

I let out a gasp. I was sort of expecting him to ask me about it, though.

Goz has some relatives that lived nearby and had a kid in the same class as Taiki. I wouldn't be surprised if he'd heard about it from them.

I fell silent, and Goz took it as confirmation.

"Aren't you gonna tell your parents about it?"

"... There'd be no point."

"But refusing to go to school is just..."

We were supposed to just have a normal conversation.

When I heard words like 'refusing to go to school' and 'parents', I felt something take over my chest.

I don't know how to describe what I felt. It was something like frustration or anger.

Whatever it was, it wasn't something that should've been directed at Goz.

But next thing I knew, I was yelling.

"Don't talk like you know what's going on! It's got nothing to do with you!"

As soon as those words left my mouth, I realized I was shoving my feelings onto the wrong person, but I couldn't apologize.

Because Goz flinched, and then had an immediate retort.

"I see how it is! My bad for being concerned! Take care!"

He left the room after saying that.

The front door closed with a loud bang, and at that moment, a wave of regret washed over me.

"What the hell am I saying..."

Goz was just worried.

He may know that my parents are strange, but he can't imagine they'd be so awful that they’d ignore their own son missing school or getting sick.

I just sat there, slumped over and clutching my head. I pulled at my own hair.

... I just wanted to protect Taiki.

I just wanted to be "normal" best friends with Goz.

But no matter how much I tried to pretend, I'm not normal at all-- I'm that fraud boy, after all.

For a while, I believed that nothing was going to work out.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3 | Track 4 | Track 5

NOTES:

(1) the hamicom (called スーハミ (suhami) in the jp text) is a reference to the super famicom gaming system, known in the west as super nes/snes

(2) spf2 (presumably shortened from something like spy fighter) is a reference to the street fighter games

(3) poyo poyo is a reference to the puyo puyo games

(4) angolmois is a word coined by the prophet nostradamus in one of his quatrains (the same one that tao talks about). it is believed that nostradamus was known for predicting doomsday events

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1: Back To The 99 - Track 2: Tuesday, June 29, 1999 / 2

“Hey, they added new songs. You guys should sing this one!”

As soon as we met up with Kinari at the karaoke bar, Goz, who was looking at the monthly new songs, made a request.

This guy’s an oddball that preferred listening to me and Kinari sing instead of singing himself.

I was looking at the booklet that had older songs in it, but Goz quickly loaded a song into the machine with the remote before Kinari and I could agree.

“Dude.”

“The song’s about to start, here’s the mic.”

The intro to the song started playing, and Kinari and I were handed microphones. Without any prior discussion, we started taking turns singing a song that had been on top of the charts recently.

Since he’s good at hitting the high notes, Kinari mostly sang the high-pitched parts, and I ended up just singing the rest of the song.

When we improvised on the lower harmony, Goz got so excited he started banging the tambourine like crazy.

“He’s so loud. Can he even hear us, or is the tambourine drowning out our voices?” I thought to myself, but I found his behavior so funny that I couldn’t help myself and started harmonizing with the tambourine.

“Ah, that was good. What should I have you guys sing next?”

“You should sing too, Goz.”

“I’m busy picking songs for you two, just be grateful.”

“Geez, your tambourine’s so loud.”

“You just want to bang on that tambourine, don’t you?”

As soon as Kinari and I were done singing, we started pointing out Goz’s silly behavior.

That’s what our usual exchanges were like. Both Kinari and I found Goz easy to tease since we got along with him so well.

“Quiet! I need to make you guys shut up. You just wait, Goz-sama will bring you both a special drink from the bar.”

After being thoroughly teased, Goz got up and left the room.

This too was a usual occurrence. Goz would create mystery drinks at the bar by mixing various drinks together and force us to drink them.

I guess it’s something like a hobby to him.

“What are we gonna do, Tao? He’s gonna make some crazy colored drinks again.”

“We got no choice but to drink them, don’t we?  … It’d be bad for the bar if we left any leftovers.”

“You’re way too nice for your own good, Tao…”

Since Goz was taking his time making the drinks, I started looking through the booklet, thinking that I might sing something.

And then Kinari said, “Oh, yeah, I brought this,” and took something out of his school bag. I thought it’d be a deck of cards, but instead, it was just a cassette recorder.

“Oh, what brand is this?”

“My father made it, actually. He likes tinkering with machines, and I remembered he gave me this some time ago and threw it in my bag.”

Having a dad that can create a whole cassette recorder is pretty awesome. I wondered what his favorite machines were.

“Your family seems to get along well, Kinari.”

“... You’re joking. It’s pretty much hell.”

When I told him my honest impression, Kinari’s expression got darker and his eyebrows furrowed just a bit.

Honestly, that shocked me. Maybe because Kinari kinda seemed like he was some heavenly being, I had assumed he and his parents had the ideal relationship.

But I guess every family’s got its problems. I started feeling ashamed of my narrow-mindedness.

“You see, my parents are overprotective. They’re always fussing over me. … It’s really annoying. I guess they do it ‘cause my body’s so weak, though.”

“... Sounds like a hassle if they keep interfering with your life.”

I tried to go along with it lightheartedly, but honestly, I felt like I completely understood where Kinari was coming from.

My parents probably interfered with my life more than Kinari’s did with his.

… But they only did it to me.

I had the ringtone turned off so I wouldn’t hear it, but I get loads of e-mails and calls from my parents. I couldn’t stand it.

It happened every day.

Right at that moment, I saw Kinari press the record button on the cassette recorder.

“What’re you gonna record?”

I asked without thinking, and Kinari laughed like a kid that pulled off a prank.

“Come on, I want to record your singing. So, what's next?”

I couldn’t hold back my laughter as I picked up the microphone.

“Then you should record your own voice too, Kinari.”

In the end, we picked a duet that we always sing together, and cheerfully sang away as if to forget our parents.

As soon as the song ended, Kinari hit the play button on the cassette recorder. I got a little embarrassed when I heard our singing voices on the recording.

“Do you think Goz will quit asking us to sing if I give him this?”

“Eh… Don’t do that. Please. He’ll use it to make fun of us for the rest of our lives.”

I winced at his rather horrifying suggestion.

And then, Kinari, who was laughing up until that moment, suddenly became expressionless.

“The rest of our lives, huh,” he whispered, and then quietly said to me, “This is a song for the dead, you know.”

I nodded, realizing that the duet we sang really was meant to be sung for people who had passed on, and Kinari turned to face me.

“Hey, Tao, if you were to die tomorrow… What would you want to say to the people you’d leave behind?”

Kinari’s eyes met mine.

At that moment, his eyes… Reflected my figure as though they were mirrors.

I stared back at him as though I was being sucked into his gaze, even though I didn’t really understand the meaning of the words he’d just asked me.

“Hey, you nitwits! Goz-sama has brought you your drinks!”

The door suddenly burst open, and Goz entered the room in high spirits. The glasses he held in both hands were an eerie mix of green and purple, and Kinari and I both grimaced.

“Get lost, go away. Take your drinks and leave.”

“Kinari~ You wanted to drink that bad? Here you go.”

“Woah… What did you put in this? Even the smell is awful…”

I never got to understand what that question meant because of Goz and his insane drinks.

Then, I thought to myself, I’d ask Kinari next time we saw each other.

After singing to our hearts’ content, we went outside and realized how much time had passed.

We got to the station and were about to part ways, but I hadn’t gone through the turnstile. 

“Aren’t you gonna take the train, Tao? Your house is kinda far isn’t it?” Kinari asked with a puzzled expression.

I froze, not knowing how to respond, but Goz replied without missing a beat.

“We’re on a diet, so we’ll bike home instead.”

“How lame. You should work out instead of dieting.” Kinari retorted, but he didn’t delve into the topic any further and walked off towards the ticket gate.

Goz was probably just covering for me. He usually goes home by train, but just as he had said, he dutifully followed me to the bicycle rack.

“You should just go back and take the train.”

“Going back’s too much of a hassle. Let me ride with you.”

“If we get caught by the cops, we’ll get in trouble…”

I said that, but I was planning to let him ride with me from the start. Goz knew that riding trains made me sick and lied to Kinari for me. But even after doing so, he didn’t ask for any favors, and didn’t start fussing over me.

… If I’m being honest, Goz’s casual acts of kindness have saved me time and again.

When we were starting middle school and Goz and I were in the same class–

I was horrified that people would find out that I was that fraud boy that had been on TV in the past.

Wanting to be loved by my parents, I started this trick of guessing cards. I was called a genius and a psychic while on TV, and my parents believed I was God’s child.

But in the end, I couldn’t bear the pressure of having to keep up the lie, and revealed on a live program that I was a fraud.

The one thing I hadn’t anticipated wasn’t the harsh criticism I’d receive from society having turned its back on me, but my parents continuing to believe, without a doubt, that I was God’s child.

All that being said, because my puberty started early and I suddenly grew taller, no one could tell that fraud child was me by the time I entered middle school.

One day, just as I was feeling relieved about that whole deal, Goz suddenly said, “You’re that psychic kid that was on TV some time ago, aren’t you!? I knew I had seen you somewhere before.”

I thought my heart was going to stop right then and there.

But instead, Goz went on:

“You revealed it was all fake during a live broadcast, didn’t you? I thought you were, like, super cool!”

… That was completely out of the blue.

I never thought I’d come across the miracle of meeting someone who knew who I was and didn’t despise me for it.

Goz and I had been inseparable ever since.

… I wonder if that’s what best friends are like? I’ve never gone out of my way to confirm it with him, but that’s what I think. Goz knew pretty much everything about me, anyway.

Pedaling was a lot heavier with Goz on board, and as soon as we reached a hill, I groaned a strained, “Get off, man!” and pedaled with all my might.

Goz laughed out loud from behind me and said, “Look ahead and keep going, Tao!” with clearly no intention of getting off.

The hustle and bustle of the station was far behind us, our path was illuminated by the residential area’s lights, and a dog was barking somewhere. I was pedaling, and Goz was laughing.

It was a trivial, pointless, and might even be considered a boring in some ways, ordinary day.

But I think days like that are the most precious thing in the world.

Being “normal” is a treasure worth more than anything else.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3 | Track 4 | Track 5

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi Ward Mayor Novel - Season 1: Back To The 99 - Track 1: Tuesday, June 29, 1999 / 1

recommended reading: Ev3ns Main Story S1 (Chained Up Scarlet)

It was supposed to be a regular evening, a regular live show, but it all changed with the deafening sound of a patrol car’s siren.

“Today was a disaster~ I came to have fun at Ev3ns’s live…”

“It’s a good thing no one was hurt, though. Be careful on the way home, okay?”

When I said that, the fan teared up for some reason.

“You’re so kind, TaoTao… I’ll definitely come tomorrow too!” They proclaimed before leaving.

The two cars that had crashed in front of Yokohama Station were still on the road, and police were questioning the drivers.

One of the vehicles was self-driving, and the other was manual. It sounded like the manual car had crashed into the self-driving one.

it was good that no one was hurt, but we Ev3ns obviously couldn't perform our guerilla live in front of the station today like we'd gotten permission to. We apologized to the fans who had come and asked them to go back home.

“Alright, hurry and start gathering your things. Once all the guests leave, you’re free to do as you please, so just change your clothes and get going. If we stay here for too long, people will start gathering and it’ll cause trouble,” our manager Nayuki-san said promptly.

After the last guest left, I started thinking about what to do with my sudden free time when Chihiro came up to me from behind and with a grin, said, “Tao, I saw that.”

“What did you see?”

“You’re baiting the delulus again, aren’t ya? The fan you saw off earlier was de~fs in love with you!”

Huh? Delulu… What’s that?

Chihiro says things I can’t understand sometimes.

He seemed excited for some reason, saying things like “You’re such a sinful man!” and “This isn’t fair!”, but he somehow looked like he was having fun.

He’s got a strange way of showing it, but I can tell he’s happy for me, so I don’t really mind it. I think that’s one of Chihiro’s good qualities.

“Everyone, since today’s plans were disrupted by the sudden accident, the evening practice will be optional. It’s been a while since we last had a day off. It’ll be short, but I hope you enjoy yourselves. Nayuki has secured a space in the changing room for an hour. Is that enough time for you?”

Our leader, Raito-san, called out to us, and we decided to call it a day for the time being.

We went out into town and started talking about whether we’d all be going out to eat or not. When Raito-san asked Nayuki-san if he wanted to eat ramen with us, he was ignored as usual (despite that, he stubbornly continued to trail after Nayuki-san, as he usually does, as usual).

Before we realized it, Kuguri-san had already left.

Chihiro called out to Kinari first, “Kinyari~ Do you wanna go for dinner with me and Tao?” He asked. 

“Thank you for the invitation. But I have a prior engagement with Master,” Kinari said, declining the invitation.

I wanted to ask him why he was so sure I'd come to dinner with him, but well, since I was invited, why not?

“Taooo, Kinyari and Chiefy have some business to take care of. Let’s go out for dinner together.”

“Sure. I don’t mind. But isn't it a little early…”

“I guess~ But all I had before our concert was a li'l snack~”

While changing in the room Nayuki-san had secured for us, Chihiro and I got to talking about where to go and kill time. 

The capable Nayuki-san and the kind Chief collected our costumes that were sure to attract attention and said they would take them back to the dorms. Thanks to them, we were able to go to town in our casual clothes.

“Hmm, the arcade? Or Karaoke? Where should we go?”

“Let’s see…”

Just as I was about to reply, I spotted a trio of high school boys walking through the evening crowd. 

They were laughing with each other, and sometimes pushed each other around. It seemed like they got along well. Their navy blue blazers and checkered slacks were one of the typical school uniforms.

… I used to wear a uniform like that too.

And I also used to spend my after school time laughing with my friends like that.

Back then, he also used to ask questions like the ones Chihiro asked me.

I suddenly remembered that.

–– Tuesday, June 29, 1999

“What should we do now? Arcade? Karaoke?”

We loosened our school uniforms and slung our school bags over our shoulders as though they were backpacks. As usual, we took our time walking through the station.

The one walking beside me was Goz. Souta Gozu. He was a friend I’d known since middle school.  Neither of us had any distinctive features, and we’re indistinguishable from the rest of the high school students wandering around after school

We’re fine with that, though.

“I wanna go to the arcade and play Chrono,” I said.

“Huh? We’ve been going nowhere but the arcade lately, though. My vote’s on karaoke.” 

Goz made a stupidly cool face and pointed his finger at me.

People often said this guy and I are similar. Honestly, we both look quite ordinary, and we often laugh about it.

“But Chrono’s new record was just set yesterday.”

“I get that you like gun games, but you should let someone else have their fun, at least for today. It’s only been a week since the new machines got here, do you even know your own rank? You’re fourth in the whole country, fourth.”

“That’s not first.”

“You’re still one of the Four Heavenly Kings, so it’s fine.”

“Ain’t that Skull Millionaire’s position?”

A loud ringtone was heard from Goz’s pocket while we were pointlessly chatting away.

He took out his silver PHS and after looking at the message that had arrived, he declared, “We’re going for karaoke.”

“Kinari’s coming too. Your harmonies are the bomb, y’know”

“Oh, if Kinari’s coming, then karaoke’s good...”

Obviously happy with that reply, Goz typed a reply to Kinari.

Last year, Kinari Azekawa was in the same class as Goz. He’d tag along when Goz came to see me, and I started talking to him too.

Goz and I hang out pretty much every day since we live in the same neighborhood, and Kinari joins us from time to time.

He’s got fair skin and light-colored hair, and as much as I hate to admit it, unlike us ordinary guys, he’s quite good-looking.

However, he often misses school.

I haven’t asked him for any of the details, but it seems like he’s got some kind of chronic illness.

He’s a good guy, but he seems sorta transparent? I feel like he’s in a different league from me, and it was hard for us to open up to each other at first.

But then we went to karaoke together.

We realized we liked the same bands, and I think we became closer because of that.

“Kinari wants you to guess his cards again today. He says he’ll get you to reveal your secret this time.”

“Ehhh… Spare me. I don’t even have my cards with me today.”

“Isn’t Kinari gonna prepare all that?”

“That’d be kinda scary, why would he put all his energy into focusing on the wrong thing?”

We laughed as we talked about it.

Despite his appearance, Kinari was strong-willed and competitive, and seemed to have vowed to expose my card guessing secrets. 

I used to wonder what was up with that.

But it didn’t feel bad that my card guessing, which I only associated with bad memories, became a sort of game thanks to Goz and Kinari.

“Alright, let’s go to our usual place.”

Walking down a familiar route, we headed towards the cheap karaoke bar that included both free time and drinks.

In the glow of sunset after school, Goz and I were just some regular high schoolers.

We were just ordinary people with no individuality, and no one even knew our names.

Being able to exist like that– 

It was the most comfortable thing in the world for me.

Track 1 | Track 2 | Track 3 | Track 4 | Track 5

[taatsums]

hi! do you allow your tls to be used in quote bots?

hi! yes feel free to use my translations in quote bots!

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi SSR - FAV collection: Scramble Birthday!

Part 1

📍 HAMA House, Living Room

Tao & Chihiro: Whew…

Chihiro: TaoTao~ Was AniGun a good change of pace…?

Tao: Sure was. Thanks, Chihiro. I’m sorta sleepy, but my head’s all cleared up.

Tao: (We were just going to play for a bit, but it ended up going ‘till morning… Now I gotta think about what I’ll do for my BD Area…)

Akuta: ‘Kays, we’re off!

Yukikaze: See you later. Look both ways before crossing the street.

Ushio: Idiotake… I know first period’s P.E. and all, but I’ve got no idea where all your energy comes from.

Akuta: Hrm? Are you not hyped, Ushio? I wanna move around lots and get hungry lots… Ah, crap, that’s an eat early flag!

Chihiro: Seeya, A-ta and Ushipoyo~

Tao: … P.E. huh, that takes me back. I remember dragging my feet through the winter marathon, but stuff like dodgeball was real fun.

Yukikaze: I see. So you liked ball games, Tao.

Tao: Oh, Kamina-san. Did you like dodgeball too?

Yukikaze: I… wasn’t able to attend many classes because of my trips for skating. Unfortunately, I haven’t done much of either metasport dodgeball or actual dodgeball.

Tao: Metasport dodgeball…?

Tao: What’s that, Chihiro?

Chihiro: Uhhh, so, nowadays during P.E. there’s this type of classes called “Metasport”.

Chihiro: They play sports in the metaverse, AKA, Metasport! So, metasport dodgeball is literally dodgeball played in the metaverse.

Tao: So even P.E. classes are held in the metaverse in this age huh. Damn, talk about innovation…

Chihiro: … I know! Hey, hey, Yukipaso, you free later?

Yukikaze: Yeah. I have the whole day off.

Chihiro: TaoTao, it’s time for change of pace part 2! How are you vibing with playing some Metasports?

Chihiro: You’re not gonna get any ideas by sitting in your room and thinking, y’know? Kinyari said he has the day off too, so let’s get together and play some MetaDodge ☆

📍 mahorova, Giant Central Screen

Tao: …Haah, haah…

Kinari: Confirmed decrease in Tao’s speed.  Recalculating frame pitching angle. …Aiming.

Yukikaze: Don’t stop, Tao. It’s coming…!

Chihiro: Goooo!! Kinyariiii!!

Kinari: We are done.

Tao: Oh shi… gh!

Announcement: “Game set! Winners– ChiiKinyari GALZ”

Tao: Damn… He got me.

Yukikaze: Are you okay, Tao?

Tao: Yes! I could go for another round! This is actually really interesting.

Tao: (The usual rules in dodgeball still apply, but instead of balls the players have “magic balls” and “shields” to use freely, and each player has 4 lives.)

Tao: (You win if you deplete all of your opponents’ lives. It’s like dodgeball but with a more video game-like feel… Maybe they could let me use this as a BD Area?)

Chihiro: Taaao. You look like you’ve got some idea.

Tao: Yeah, I do. … Thanks, Chihiro.

Part 2

📍 mahorova, BD Area

Kaede: Your BD Area is a great success, Tao-kun! A new battle activity inspired by metasports, huh…

Energetic Boomer: Haaaaa!! ‘85 HAMA bomber!!

Boomer’s Grandson: Huh!? Cosmic☆C-Lock☆Shield!

Tao: A place where anyone can have fun and can use magic as if they’re in a video game…  I’m glad my imagination came to life.

Raito: We can’t just dilly-dally in the back, however. We’ll also stand in the battlefield.

Kaede: Right… I’m kind of nervous.

Kinari … It is time, Master.

Chihiro (off-screen): “Ding-dong, ding-dong~”

Chihiro (off-screen): “Chiirios, everypony! How’re you doing, guys? Today’s main event is coming up…!”

Chihiro (off-screen): “Team TaoTao vs 100 fans… The Scramble BD Magic Battle is gonna start soooon~!”

📍 mahorova, Giant Central Screen

Chihiro: You can aim straight at Tao, or you can put up a shield to protect yourself! They’ll be fun round robin battles that’ll go for up to 4 rounds♪

📍 mahorova, BD Area

Chihiro (off-screen): “Can you defeat Ev3ns’ hardcore gamer TaoTao…”

Chihiro (off-screen): “… and all of his allies!?”

Chihiro (off-screen): “Oh, but! This time, everyone only has 2 lives. Things would get reeeaally messy if everyone had 4!”

Chihiro (off-screen): “And wait till you hear the winner’s prize! You’ll get a free supply of insta TaoTao pics for the entire year♪ Good luck, everyone~♪”

📍 mahorova, Giant Central Screen

Chihiro: Commentating the match for you are Chii and…!

Kuguri: Everyone’s greedy eyes are glued to maci… What an obscene banquet this is.

Chihiro: Our most infamous banned commenter, Kugurin! ☆ Get hyped, you guys♪

Kuguri: …The viewers are increasing by the second. Will you be okay, little guy? It’d be quite the tragedy if you were to let the curtain fall now.

Nayuki: You don’t have to tell me that. I swear in my name as mahorova’s COO that I will never let the server go down.

📍 mahorova, BD Area

Raito: We’re outnumbered… We may be at a disadvantage, but that’s exactly what will get us going!

Kaede: We don’t see this type of event often. This was a great idea, Tao-kun.

Tao: At first, I was just thinking of using the metasport dodgeball system in order to provide people a way to use magic.

Tao: But then Chihiro was like, “but raids would go so hard like this!” and encouraged me to do this, and we came up with it together. … Though this must be troublesome for everyone who joined my team.

Raito: Don’t worry. If anything, I’m grateful you invited me to this incredible, festival-like event. I will enjoy myself to the fullest.

Kaede: Me too. I’ll give it my best to make this event a success!

Kinari: I have collected the data for the field map, as well as the members’ physical abilities, including Master’s. You can leave the support to me, Tao.

Tao: … Alright!

Chihiro (off-screen): “Thaaanks for waiting!! The first members of Team TaoTao are, the man himself, Raitin, Kinyari, and our HAMA Tours’ very own Chiefy~~~!”

Chihiro (off-screen): “Now then, let’s get this raid with unlimited selfies on the line staaaarted~~!!”

[Battle horn]

Raito: I can feel my adrenaline rushing. I consider myself to be bad at video games, but…

Raito: Hup!

Raito: I have no problems with this battle format. I can fight as usual!

Kinari: Three at 9 o’clock. Two are also heading straight towards us from 1 o’clock. I will handle them.

Chihiro: “This turned into a battle royale in no time! You can see the sparks of battle erupting all over~”

Tao-biased Ev3ns Fan A: … Damnit. But it’s an honor to be defeated by you…

Tao: Ah, umm. Please come to our concert again. I’ll be looking forward to seeing you.

Tao-biased Ev3ns Fan A: Ahhh!! You have to stop that, Kinouchi!! You’ll make me fall even harder for you!!

Kaede: (Tao-kun is amazing. He’s following up with every person he defeats…)

Chihiro (off-screen): “TaoTao is on a roll! He’s defeated 10 people without losing a single life~!”

Man Adjusting His Glasses: We’ll be your next opponents, TaoTao… No, Kinouchi-kun!

Tao: (What’s with that guy… His movements aren’t like the other players’?)

📍 mahorova, Giant Central Screen

Kuguri: Oh my… Do we have a strong opponent coming up?

Nayuki: ! I had a feeling I’d seen that man before… He’s a Metasports professional…! We even have players with annual salaries amounting to billions of yen participating!?

Chihiro: FR!?

📍 mahorova, BD Area

Metasports Pro (Glasses): Kinouchi-kun! Join our team!

Metasports Pro (Glasses): I’ve been sure of this after watching all your AniGun streams. Your aiming skills are made for Metasports! Join us, and let’s take on the world together!

Kaede: You’re scouting him!?

Kaede: I’m glad Tao-kun’s skills have been recognized, but… He’s one of our irreplaceable staff members!  … I won’t let you have him!

Metasports Pro (Glasses): Mrgh!?

📍 mahorova, Giant Central Screen

Chihiro: Ohhh, here comes Chiefy! The members of Team TaoTao are heating up!

Chihiro: They’ve taken a life with a surprise attack, and aren’t letting up! They’re continuing their assault~!

Kuguri: What a simple move. But…

📍 mahorova, BD Area

Metasports Pro (Afro): Rookie mistake. Your flank is wide open!

Tao: (He’s shooting an energy ball from the sidelines!!)

Tao: ——Chief!!

Tao: That was close…! They almost got you… You okay, Chief?

Kaede: Y-Yeah. I’m fine… But–

Metasports Pro (Glasses): He’s been thrown off guard… Now! OHKO Sonic Shot!!

Kaede: You have to get away, Tao-kun! It’ll hit you too!

Tao: I’m not going anywhere. I’ll protect you, Chief. And defense…

Tao: Isn’t the only way to do that.

Kaede: Huh…?

Chihiro (off-screen): “Oh, what’s TaoTao going to… Huh!? He jumped straight into the enemy’s attack!?”

Tao: (I’m no match for a pro head-on. But whenever anyone uses an OP attack, there’s gotta be recoil. And that’s when…)

Tao: I’ll break through…!!

Metasports Pro (Glasses): Mrgh!?

Tao: I’m sorry. I appreciate the sentiment, but the place I belong to right now… and the place I want to do my best in, is right here with Ev3ns.

Tao: ——Alright, next! Bring it on!

-

Kaede: Great job all across the board, Tao-kun! Although I could only watch for the second half of the games, I enjoyed it as if I was still there myself.

Tao: Thank you. I’m really glad we won.

Tao: I think everyone who participated in my team really did their best… 

Tao: But… I protected the chance of someone getting unlimited pictures with me with my life, and I’m not sure if that was the right thing to do.

Kaede: We’ll be distributing all the pictures that were taken today, so I think it’ll be fine?

Kaede: Like, look at this one…! Both you and the fans have your best smiles on.

Tao: … You’re right. I’ll treasure this picture, too.

Tao: I was amazed to see the fans move so well around the field. I guess I could say I got to play a video game with my fans this time, yeah?

Tao: (I hope we can play together again… Nah, can’t say that.)

Kaede: Yup, I think so. I hope we can hold another event where we can all have fun like this.

Tao: Yes. I feel like I’ve got one more thing to look forward to now. Let’s play a different game next time!

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi SR - Diner Cool Bazooka: Looking Up To A Legendary Idol

Part 1

📍 Yokohama Station

Raito: Good work with the live show, everyone! The fans that come to watch us regularly stood out more than usual today.

Tao: At this point, we can even recognize the people that show up every time from where we stand on stage.

Raito: Yeah. Perhaps it would be a good idea to switch up our setlist so those who come every time can enjoy themselves as well…

Tao: What do you guys think?

Chihiro: Agreed! Chii’s been thinking about that too~! It’ll help our shows from being, like, monotone, but alsooo…

Chihiro: How about we do some rollerskating to keep things spicy!?

Kuguri: It certainly doesn’t take a genius to guess what inspired you.

Chihiro: Tao and Kinyari were sooo cutieful when they worked and skated around at Taroppu’s diner! 

Tao: Pretty sure there used to be idols that performed with rollerskates and stuff…

Kinari: The search has come up with results for the male idol group, “KAWORU Taisho”. Their rollerskate performances appear to have taken the world by storm.

Tao: But… Leaving skating normally aside for a sec, isn’t it even harder to dance with them on?

Nayuki: There is also a high risk of one of you falling off from the stage. I cannot permit this unless you’re all proficient.

Chihiro: Weren’t Tao and Kinyari lowkey, like, acrobats, during the test run of the opening of the store?

Tao: Yowa-san kept speeding around, and Kinari was avoiding him while having both of his hands full.

Kinari: I believe you were doing the same, Tao.

Tao: Actually, if I can skate, then it’ll be a piece of cake for Chihiro, who’s got a strong core from all the dancing he does, right…?

Raito: If that’s the case, then we’ll also put in the effort! Right, Kuguri!

Kuguri: It goes without saying, obviously, but I’m not taking part in this. Although if you lot are so eager, I won’t get in your way.

Nayuki: … I don’t believe I have to point out that only 4 out of the 5 of you performing would be extremely unbalanced.

Chihiro: How ‘bout we split it into parts, then? We can start with Tao and Kinyari, since they’ve already got the exp for it!

Raito: Let’s see… For now, we should look into what part of our performance we can incorporate this. Can I leave that to you two?

Kinari: Understood. Tao and I will work on this.

Tao: (… Uh, wait, back up.)

Tao: (I got through the diner within an inch of my life, and you expect me to perform…!?)

Part 2

📍 A certain park

Tao: Okay. There aren’t a lot of people around here, so we should be able to practice.

Kinari: Yes. First, the steps–

Tao: … Kinari?

Kinari: When I tried to make the step, for some reason, I started going backwards–

Tao: Wait, use your feet, your feet! You gotta stop yourself!

Kinari: I have understood that gravity plays an important part in rollerskating.

Tao: Sure does. Also, you have to be aware of your starting place when you take a step, otherwise you’ll hurt yourself. Let’s try a spin next…

Tao: Spin in place and— WOOAaaah….!?

[Tao starts shaking]

Kinari: It is a wonderful spin… However, this move only requires one spin. You’ve done 6, 7, 8…

Tao: M-My eyes are…—

[Tao falls]

-

Tao: Even if you know what’s going to happen, controlling it is pretty hard, huh...

Tao: It’s so different from just skating straight…

Kinari: But you’ve made progress since we began practicing. Should we try once with the song playing along?

Tao: Alright… Let’s give it a go!

[Tao and Kinari skating around]

Tao & Kinari: ~~~~♪

Tao: (And we switch positions here– Wait…!)

Kinari: ~~, ~ ♪

Tao: Kinari, we’ll crash if you don’t dodge me…!!

Kinari: !!

[Tao and Kinari crash]

-

Tao: I don’t think we can bring what we have right now up on stage…?

Kinari: This is our first day practicing, so the results are as expected. We will simply need to optimize our movements for rollerskating.

Kinari: Tao, I’d like to take a break and check out some footage of “KAWORU Taisho”. I have made a playlist with the most prominent performances.

Tao: For real? Thanks a ton!

Tao: Woah, that takes me back… Looking at it now, it sure looks pretty cool. Or, more like… Stylish? Maybe?

Kinari: The way their hachimaki is flowing in the air is incredible as well. This kind of styling can only be perfected with the aid of rollerskates.

Tao: Maybe we should think about our costumes too…

Kinari: There is a 76.44% chance we will go viral for paying homage to them. I will make the order.

📍 HAMA House, Rooster Room

Kinari: Tao, the costumes paying homage to “KAWORU Taisho” have arrived. Let us check them out together.

Tao: Ohhh…! I was actually looking forward to this.

Tao: Hold up, what’s with these stupidly short shorts…!?

Tao: (We gotta put these on, wear the hachimaki, and then skate around…?)

Tao: (No, no, no, no, no, it’s a totally different thing when you see it in real life! This is impossible…! I can’t do that…!!)

Kinari: It’s a big change from what we usually do, but I believe it’s perfect to keep things from getting monotonous.

Tao: … This isn’t just a big change, it’s a huge change!

Kinari: However, the probability of the audience being into it is 80–

Tao: You know what, this costume and rollerskates are actually things only legendary idols can wear…!

Tao: Let’s just work hard in our own way so we can get to their level! So let’s shelve this idea for now… Okay!?

[taatsums]

Tao Kinouchi SSR - The Large Flower That Blooms In The Night Sky: Bullets In The Summer

Part 1

📍 HAMA House, Living Room

Kaede: (There’s only a week left until the shrine’s summer festival…)

Kaede: (I was pretty surprised to hear Ev3ns would be collaborating on it… I wonder how everyone’s preparations are going?)

Chihiro: Top it with sugar candy and marshmallows aaaandddd~ finish it up with color spray and matcha powder!

Kaede: Aww, that’s a really cute chocobanana! Is it a prototype for your stall, Chihiro-kun?

Chihiro: Yuppies! I’ll make a dazzable drop-dead gorgeous chocobanana with loads of toppings♪

Kaede: (That’s Chihiro-kun for you, he sure is good with his hands.)

Chihiro: Alsooo, I wanna decorate my stall like this too~ Like, something that stands out from far, but is still super duper hype and cutieful?

Kaede: I see what you mean… Maybe you could ask Nagi-kun for some advice.

Kaede: He makes flower stands and stuff at his shop, so he might know a few tips on how to make your stall stand out.

Chihiro: I seeee! He’d make the perf teacher for this, then♪ I’ll head to Nagipoyo’s shop and ask him RN!

Chihiro: I’ll take some Chii-produced chocobananas too! Big thankies, Chiefy~!

Kaede: Ah, see you late…

Kaede: (…Off he goes…)

Kaede: (Well, it looks like Chihiro-kun’s fine for now. Next—)

Tao: Looks like Chihiro’s doing well…

Kaede: Woah, Tao-kun!

Kaede: Tao-kun, you’re doing the, uhhh, shooting gallery, right? How’s that going?

Tao: That’s, well… I’m pretty much done with the gun selection and the stall’s layout, but I’m kinda stuck on the prizes.

Tao: I’m not really sure what kinda things would make people happy.

Kaede: Prizes, huh… I usually think of things like sweets and little mascot merch.

Tao: Guess you’re right… I guess kids would be into Kappanosuke sweets or merch…

Kaede: That sounds good! It’s popular with kids, isn’t it? That takes me back…

Tao: Oh, you know it, Chief?

Kaede: Yeah. I watched it a lot with my little sister back in the day.

Tao: (Didn’t know they’re still doing Kappanosuke…)

Kaede: That reminds me, a summer festival’s shooting gallery had a Kappanosuke figure as its prize a long time ago… The one based on the movie where Kappanosuke goes to space.

Tao: (Kappanosuke actually went to space…!? I’m curious… Maybe I’ll watch the movie later.)

Kaede: I was determined to do anything in my power to get it back then. … But reality is harsher than it seems…

Tao: So you didn’t get the figure…

Kaede: Yeah, I sucked at the game. I put all my New Year’s money and even my pocket change on it, too.

Tao: Haha, that probably was a lot of money for a kid too… I get how you felt, though.

Tao: If anything, I’d like to fill my stall with stuff that makes people that desperate, too.

Kaede: …In that case, how about you start with things that you like and would want to win?

Tao: I see. The things I like…

Kaede: Right, right. For example…

Kaede: Video games and the like?

Tao: I mean, I do want AniGun merch and stuff. The game’s got lots of cool designs, too.

Tao: Also, there’s a game I’ve been super interested in. It’s an indie game where you travel through a post-apocalyptic world with a bear that’s just woken up from hibernation.

Tao: It looks like you can chill while playing it, so would you like to try it out with me, Chief?

Kaede: (Tao-kun’s eyes always sparkle when he’s talking about video games. He must like them a lot.)

Kaede: What about your clothes?

Tao: About that… I went shopping with Chihiro a few days ago.

Tao: He offered to coordinate my outfit, so I just bought exactly what he suggested. I think I’m good on that front.

Kaede: (Chihiro-kun picking out all kinds of clothes for Tao-kun… Somehow, I can picture that pretty easily.)

Tao: …Trying to think of stuff I want is actually pretty hard, huh.

Kaede: You could also think of what the people close to you would want.

Kaede: For example… Everyone in HAMA House. You’re pretty observant of your surroundings, so you might get some kind of hint by thinking of them.

Tao: …

Tao: Raito-san would like things that have to do with the occult, and Akuta would like alien figures…

Kaede: Ahaha. I think these are a little too specific to be prizes, though…

Tao: Yeah, you’re right. But I think I get it, kinda.

Tao: (I was thinking I was missing the final piece of the puzzle, maybe it needs to be something that’s makes us, “us”?)

Tao: (Since the festival is a collaboration with Ev3ns… or rather, HAMA Tours, it’d be nice if the prizes reflected that.)

Tao: Thanks for your help, Chief. I’ll give it a bit more thought.

Kaede: Okay. I’m looking forward to the stall you’ll make, Tao-kun!

Part 2

📍Shrine

Tao: (The summer festival’s tomorrow, finally…)

Chihiro: OMG! The sign’s soooo cutieful~! I have a feeling Chii’s food stall is going to be a mega hit☆

Kinari: There is only 17% progress left until the completion of the stall. My stall will also be finished in an hour.

Tao: (…Looks like these two have their sights set on some incredible stalls. I gotta do my best, too.)

Kaede: Good work, Tao-kun! I’m handing out treats, you should have some too.

Tao: Ah, Chief. Hello.

Kaede: Wow, your stall is progressing pretty nicely. The sign and the exterior both look really cool!

Tao: Thanks. It’s inspired by airsoft games, so I tried to use camouflage and fake green decorations.

Kaede: I see, I see. This is definitely going to appeal to men!

Kaede: Oh, are you still working on the interior? Would you like any help? I could take out the trash, or clean, or something.

Tao: Are you sure? That’d be a big help.

Tao: Then… Could I ask you to help me line up the prizes? There’s a lot of ‘em, so…

Kaede: Of course! I’ll start lining them up from the ones here, then.

Kaede: (Speaking of, I’m kind of curious what prizes Tao-kun ended up picking.)

Kaede: Ummm, this is…

Tao: An eyemask from TuRyStA, that over there is a stainless steel hip flask, and…

Kaede: …A camouflage backpack, a portable watercolor set, a Kappanosuke neck pillow… Could everything here be…

Kaede: …Travel goods?

Tao: Yes. I figured you’d immediately realize the connection.

Tao: I’ve been thinking about it ever since we talked. I think what all of us love, what makes us “us”, is travelling.

Tao: So I was thinking that I want my customers to win one of these prizes and think that they’d like to go on a trip.

Kaede: …Ohhh, I think that’s wonderful! Since they’re practical, adults would definitely want them, and they’ve got mascots on them, so I think little kids would be happy to get them too!

Kaede: If anything, I want to get them all, too!

Tao: Seriously…? I’m really happy I have your approval, Chief.

Tao: Since we’ve arranged some prizes, would you like to try it out for a bit? It’d help me adjust the bullets’ firing speed, too.

Kaede: Can I? Wow, the guns here look sort of authentic, don’t they…? Like they’re straight out of a spy movie, or something…

Tao: I took the chance to prepare guns that can fire multiple shots at once, too.

Tao: Technically, all you’ve got to do is pull the trigger, so it’s good for beginners too! I highly recommend this submachine gun too. It has little recoil and is easy to control.

Kaede: (A machine gun in a shooting gallery…  How do I put this, going all out like this is very much like Tao-kun.)

Kaede: Okay, I’ll give it a try. …Am I standing right?

Tao: It’s fine, but you’d be a lot more comfortable if you spread your feet and put your stock on your shoulder. Like this…

Kaede: (Wow… Incredible! The look in his eyes as he aimed for that neck pillow was almost like a professional assassin’s.)

Kaede: (I’ll try to imitate him…)

Tao: …Adjust your front and rear sights while keeping this position, and try pulling the trigger.

Kaede: Okay, I got it. Here goes..

[Gunshot]

Kaede: Woah!? That’s some intense recoil… So? Did I hit anything?

Tao: You didn’t hit anything, but that was a nice try!

Kaede: Ahaha, it’s kinda embarrassing how bad I am at this…

Tao:  It’ll sound arrogant if I say I’ll do it as an example, but as the stall’s owner, I wanna give it a try too.

Tao: …I’ll aim for the one at the corner.

Kaede: (The one at the corner…)

Kaede: (Th-That’s–!)

[Gunshot]

Tao: … ‘Kay, there’s no issue with the firing speed.

Kaede: Amazing! You shot it down in an instant.

Tao: Please wait here for a second.

Kaede: (If I’m not mistaken, the prize Tao-kun won…)

Tao: Chief… Here you go. Please take this Kappanosuke figure.

Kaede: (Thought so!)

Kaede: Huh, you’re giving it to me? And it’s the one I mentioned wanting as a kid…!

Tao: He’s easy to recognize since he’s wearing a spacesuit. This is my thanks for all the advice you’ve given me.

Tao: It’s just a reprint though, so I’m sorry it’s kinda small.

Kaede: …No, it’s okay. I’m really happy.

Kaede: Since it’s this small, I can bring it with me anywhere in the world. Thank you, Tao-kun. My traveling companions have increased thanks to you.

Tao: Nah… Um… You’re welcome…

Tao: … Would you like to continue practice your shooting?

Kaede: Yes! I’ll be in your care, Teacher!